Nashua was the King of the North. By all appropriate titles and official knowledges, he was lord and regent of the Isle, the moors and cliffs of Nerine, and the shadowy redwoods of Taiga. Commander, counselor, Sovereign bearer of the crown. They were the factual parts of her Uncle that the rest of the world knew him by, but to Cheri he had always been something else.
Nashua was her father’s brother. According to all her cherished memories, he was the adventurous and high-flying relative from up north, keeper of the best stories about Beqanna for the time, and a most beloved family member to Cheri. His children had grown up right alongside her, and the clans of the northern sectors had experienced a great time of peace and bounty under his constant watch.
Now the gray mist enveloped them both, clinging like their individual sorrows in a way that made their alternative selves seem dim in comparison. How could Cheri be expected to walk the straight and narrow path when she felt like straying off it entirely? How could she expect Nashua to help her when his needs were the summation of an entire kingdom’s worth of problems? It all felt impossible.
What helps is the way his kind words make short work of her melancholy. “Thank you Uncle.” She said quietly. “It’s good to hear you say it.”
She did her best to nestle her head into the crook of Nashua’s winged shoulder, wanting to give him the sensation of comforting a needy child without really alluding to the fact that she was neither a child nor needy. In her own way, Cheri thought the warmth of her embrace might help with the real loss of his offspring, but she would never be so callous or brazen as to bring up the shocking news in a response to his query on her life. Reave had only just told her about the stolen prince back in Nerine, and Cheri was willing to bet the horrible shock was enough of a silent pain without her verbal acknowledgement.
“I’ve been thinking.” She told him. “About how two heads are better than one, you know.” Cheri wished she could smile. The best she could manage was not to sound miserable.
“I understand the North needs you right now.” She admitted. “And I hope you can forgive me for this, but I came to ask a favor of you.” The black-and-green pegasus asked hesitantly, taking the moment to pull herself away from familiar coziness of his scent so the winter King could have his space.
Nashua was her father’s brother. According to all her cherished memories, he was the adventurous and high-flying relative from up north, keeper of the best stories about Beqanna for the time, and a most beloved family member to Cheri. His children had grown up right alongside her, and the clans of the northern sectors had experienced a great time of peace and bounty under his constant watch.
Now the gray mist enveloped them both, clinging like their individual sorrows in a way that made their alternative selves seem dim in comparison. How could Cheri be expected to walk the straight and narrow path when she felt like straying off it entirely? How could she expect Nashua to help her when his needs were the summation of an entire kingdom’s worth of problems? It all felt impossible.
What helps is the way his kind words make short work of her melancholy. “Thank you Uncle.” She said quietly. “It’s good to hear you say it.”
She did her best to nestle her head into the crook of Nashua’s winged shoulder, wanting to give him the sensation of comforting a needy child without really alluding to the fact that she was neither a child nor needy. In her own way, Cheri thought the warmth of her embrace might help with the real loss of his offspring, but she would never be so callous or brazen as to bring up the shocking news in a response to his query on her life. Reave had only just told her about the stolen prince back in Nerine, and Cheri was willing to bet the horrible shock was enough of a silent pain without her verbal acknowledgement.
“I’ve been thinking.” She told him. “About how two heads are better than one, you know.” Cheri wished she could smile. The best she could manage was not to sound miserable.
“I understand the North needs you right now.” She admitted. “And I hope you can forgive me for this, but I came to ask a favor of you.” The black-and-green pegasus asked hesitantly, taking the moment to pull herself away from familiar coziness of his scent so the winter King could have his space.
@Nashua