[private] don't get cut on my edges • kagerus

[Amet]

don't get cut on my edges ─
I'm the king of everything and oh my tongue is a weapon

If there was any indication of Kagerus' distrust for him lingering on her painted face, it goes unnoticed by Amet. He's still caught in his own mind for a brief moment, particularly on Solace's short recount of the last several years and her thoughts on the woman who now stands beside him. No, he probably wouldn't have noticed even if he hadn't been stuck halfway between the present and the surreal feeling that his return to Beqanna spins in his mind; he places unfaltering trust in Solace's judgement, taking her word the way he had taken Tangerine's. No, distrust is not one of the things that he looks for as his speech comes to an end and his amber eyes travel leisurely back to the antlered Kagerus.

A quick bout of laughter falls from his lips at the mare's response and he shoots her a look of faux disbelief. "I don't believe Solace's opinion of you would be unfounded," he says with a hint of amusement to mask the fact that it is, partly, an attempt at drawing himself into the Queen's good graces. Truth be told, she holds his future in her capable embrace, and he's quite certain that Kagerus has already deduced his reason for being here: Hyaline.

Amet's desire to ask about his old home dances on his tongue, nearly jumping from his mouth with no coaxing of his own. Solace had told him more than he had expected her to in the short time they had spoken upon his return, but it still arises unbidden at the forefront of his thoughts. The brief silence in his conversation with Kagerus gives the dragonhide stallion the chance to rein in his curiosity and, instead, he directs his inquiry towards Silver Cove and the Sanctuary in general.

His amber gaze turns back to meet Kagerus' nutmeg one, his head bobbing in acknowledgment of her words as she explains the herd's relocation from Hyaline to the Cove during the outbreak of the plague. He can only imagine the turmoil that had ensued during such a dark and uncertain time ─ surely others had had their eyes on the uninfected lands, this fact reaffirming the gold-and-bronze stallion's original thought that Solace and Kagerus were a stable and powerful pair.

A sad twinge arrives suddenly, turning the corners of his mouth down just slightly, as the leopard-spotted mare mentions discord in the leadership of their subkingdoms. New questions arise within him but they are better reserved for later as suddenly Kagerus' gaze has shifted away from him, offering a perfect foil to the very pointed inquiry she has now bestowed upon him. "Tainted it?" he asks, unable to hide the incredulous tone that clings to his voice, "Absolutely not. You and Solace have expanded it to reaches that I had never imagined." He pauses for a moment, a gaze flung back over his shoulder in the direction of Hyaline before returning it to the painted woman, regardless of whether or not her eyes still linger on the lavender horizon.

"I was young," he tells her, trying to find the words to explain, "And I was just trying to make it from one day to the next... And in truth, it all started with a bit of selfishness ─" a chuckle, "─ I needed a home, a safe haven, for myself and my siblings. I was so consumed with the idea that I needed to prove I wasn't just the young colt who had fled from my homeland," he admits, though the words are neither sheepish or ashamed, "And then the idea just grew. It was so fitting, you know? It was easy for all of us to spend time by the lake and feel safe. We had each other. We had our safe haven." He pauses now, a quiet and contented sigh slipping from his lips. "My eyes never turned outward from Hyaline. I never considered that the Sanctuary could be expanded beyond its borders. So no, Kagerus, you have not tainted it ─ you have breathed new life into it. And for that, I am forever in yours and Solace's debt." As his soliloquy fades into its end, Amet is left feeling calm, as if it had provided the catharsis that he had been so badly needing.

"Sorry," he adds with a quiet chuckle, "it certainly isn't my business, but I'm curious about the issues you mentioned earlier ─ with Hyaline's leadership," he pauses briefly, and then ─ "But please don't feel obligated to appease my meddling."

- Amet -

[@[Kagerus]! ♥]

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