[open] every stroke of luck has got a bleed through

[magnus]

desire consumes me like a fire consumes me

Magnus has always loved the interactions that he finds in the fields, the back and forth, the personalities always so different from one another. It’s helped him long since hone his patience, find the edges of his temper so that he rarely reacts off the cuff anymore. When the avian mare approaches, scoffing slightly at his question, he only laughs a little, rolling his shoulders. “You will have to forgive me,” his whiskey voice is light with humor, gold-flecked eyes sparking. “I do my best, but I am a deeply unoriginal man.”

He turns his attention back to the stallion though, ears twisting in the tangled mess of his mane as he listens. “Aldric,” he repeats, tilting his head slightly to the mare, “Brine. Pleasure to meet you both.” When the other stallion refers to this as the land of lost and found, he frowns briefly, the look of it flashing across his features before wiping clean, replaced with the familiar kindness.

“I prefer to think of it as a place for fresh starts and new beginnings,” he says with a roll of his shoulders. “Or perhaps I am just softening it since I’ve come here looking for it before myself.” A crooked smile as he continues, “Either way, I’m happy you found your way here.” The stallion asks of their own homes, and he looks toward the border, to where Tephra lies beyond, his heart aching suddenly for the land.

“I’m from Tephra, a land marked most prominently by a volcano north of here.” It’s beautiful, he thinks, but he doesn’t have the words to properly describe that. “It’s surrounded on three sides by ocean and warm—even during the dead of winter.” He’s always liked that. Liked the humidity and the heat, the way it reminds him of his jungle childhood home. “As a kingdom, we are relatively neutral. We maintain open borders and seek to serve as a haven to those who need it. Especially now that we remain a safe land during this plague.” A safety earned through the sacrifice of Warrick, a safety earned through blood.

He doesn’t speak of that though, doesn’t dive further into its history.

Instead, he just gives them both a roguish smile.

“I would be happy to tell you more or answer any questions you may have.”

And then he falls quiet, turning his gaze to Brine and waiting attentively to hear of her home.

good shouldn’t need to tempt us above

@[Brine] @[Aldric]