[open] find me in the clouds; any

[Loire]

got my head in the clouds
and i'm not coming down

Loire had once saw the world in many colors. The warm rays of the sun and the smell that came with the rain had become some of her favorite things. However, her world of color did not last. It could never in a world that was filled with monsters and madness. The day her world of color faded is simply a blur to her now. She only remembers something dark enveloping her. Something closing in around her, filling her with the deepest dread. Every second that passed, the more her body become scorched from fighting. Fight what though? The edges of reason blurred together, fear lurched deep into her stomach. She lost hold of her consciousness eventually, drifting into the vast, menacing darkness. It felt like she was trapped in another world where she could not breathe or escape. The last thing she remembers before slipping away was pain. Squaw! Squaw! Loire gasps suddenly, her heart jumps into her throat as she snaps from her nightmare and she is pulled back into reality. Her gold eyes are wide, filled with fright, and frantically looking around. The sound of crashing waves, roaring with madness, quickly draws her eyes to look forward, realizing where she stands. Her hooves are deeply buried in the wet sand, the foamy water is inches away from her, the white mare staggers backwards. A shrill cry of panic escapes from her as she reels back frantically. Squaw! Squaw! The gulls swoop and cry out. Her eyes dart up, quickly drawn to their cries. They are erratic, chaotic, noisier and without formation now. The birds flew through the developing canvas of dawn, their wings were fine quills, drawing the buoyant colors. Their wings in the sky had become the colors of her dreams—the dreams she wished she could have again at least. If Loire could have thrown her soul to the sky and be transformed into a bird, she would have done it without hesitation. It was the kind of carefree freedom she wanted to taste, even if it was for a short time. She wanted to breakaway from the confines of her life. Lowering her head, she closes her eyes, and imagines what it would be like to escape. Ischia no longer gave her the warm, cozy feeling that a home should give someone. She relived the nightmare every day when the sounds of the waves crashed on the shore and the sight of seeing the ocean. The ocean around her home was her prison walls, she was trapped—a bird in a cage. She wanted to be free, free from it all. Could she? Maybe if she imagined. Maybe if she believed a little harder. She imagined what it would like to feel weightless; a cloud drifting slowly into the horizon and never turning back. The freedom that wings give, never binding you, never holding you chained to the home that you forsake. The birds could do it, so why couldn’t she? Loire opened her eyes, still feeling like a cloud, but she couldn’t believe what she saw next. She was floating in the air. Was she levitating? No, no. It didn’t feel right. Am I flying? Her mouth gapes open in awe. “I am flying! I am flying!” There was no doubt, no hesitation to believe dreams truly could come true. Loire was a dreamer after all. If she did end up waking up from this dream, she did not care at all. It was better than her dark nightmare. She bounds forward, not questioning how she can fly. Her only instinct was to get away—it was her only chance to finally leave it all behind. The young mare joins the birds in the sky, they welcome her to fly with them, as if she is one of them. Their white bodies soared across the sky. The silver lining of the morning clouds was sliced by the vast, beautiful wings. In the distance, the coast of the mainland came into view, but the white flock did not stop there. Further away, deeper into the mainland, Loire wanted to go, away from the sounds of the ocean. They continued across forests, hilly terrain, and rocky mountains until a wide land of lush grasses opened up. A small cascade of water rained down a cliff side in the distance, falling into a large lake. It reminded her of the one back in Ischia, but she pushes that thought aside when she decides this is where she needs to be. Descending to the ground, the white and gold pointed mare lands gracefully. She turns to the birds in the sky, telling them thank you and goodbye, and somehow, they understand her. Loire watches as the white flock disappears into the distance, perhaps heading back to Ischia, and then turns to face the center of the field. Without a second thought, the white mare makes her way forward. A soft, warm smile faintly lifts on her lips as she realizes this was no dream.

Loire

the windwalker

Loire is looking for either a neutral/light home on the mainland. She isn't a huge fan of the water due to her near to death experience from drowning by a kelpie. Anywhere but Loess or the islands are good to come and recruit her

[Eurwen]

Eurwen

the secret of walking on water
is knowing where the rocks lie

Days passed into weeks, and weeks into months. Her daughters were frivolous things, each of them beautiful in their own way, and with a unique perspective on the world. Had she ever experienced it like them? Perhaps, long before she left to run after a fairy’s call, she might have - life on the Isle with her own twin sister hadn’t been so bad, though it had been cold. She also missed her older sister - the blue roan with the gold blaze - but she hadn’t seen her in a long, long while.

Some of her family was lost to her, she knew. Her father was around, sure, but he was busy with his own things and frankly Wenny just wasn’t interested in the Isle. He probably worked hard on restoring it in his own unique way, a way that was different enough from her own ideas of restoring Nerine that they had this mutual, silent agreement not to get involved with each other too much. On a day like this, the warm spring breeze promising summer was on it’s way, she decided to expose the girls to the world - a warmer place like the Field and maybe the Playground afterwards, wouldn’t be a bad experience for them.

”Stick around, you two.” she warned the girls, though the warmth in her voice probably had them do the exact opposite. Fechín darted away, though when the spotted mare nickered a warning, she managed to stay in sight. The painted girl was going to be trouble when she grew to teenage age, for sure. For now though, her mischievous actions were easily forgiven, not only by herself but also by others.

Eurwen’s dark orbs darted over the Field and rested on the glowing light figure of a young mare, almost a teenager herself still. She seemed overjoyed by something, and the spotted mare found herself smiling instantly.

Before she makes her way forward, she calls the twins back to her side. ”Let’s find out who that is. Maybe she’ll like Nerine, too.” she tells them. A little bit of a learning experience, she thinks.

She approaches the young mare with the same smile on her face, finding the girl instantly likeable. ”Good day. I’m Eurwen, and these are Brienna, and Fechín. We’re from Nerine.” she introduces themselves, and then she notices another scent on the wind. ”And that would be my friend Lilliana, and her sons, if I’m not mistaken.” she chuckles a bit as she makes the additional introduction.

@[lilliana]

[lilliana]

Lilliana knows that - knows what it is to look at a horizon and to see a whole possibility of colors. So many that to even imagine all the individual hues wouldn’t be conceivable. She, too, has been overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of shades.

(And she knows what it is to mourn the lack of colors when the world falls dark.)

These days, her more immediate concern is regarding the two chestnut colts who kick up their heels and relish the open space of the Field. It is meant to be an outing of sorts for them - a way to stretch their legs away from Nerine and Taiga. She has one son with wings and another with intangibility. (Lilliana lacks the gift of Duplication and has to make due with what she can - there is only one of her.)

A trip to the Field entices the brothers enough that they mind their manners. Nashua doesn’t call Neverwhere a rock that day and Lilli considers it a small victory.

"Nashua, Yanhua,” she calls when their antics take them further than she is comfortable with. "Not so far!” Her weight shifts uneasily from hip to another while she keeps one careful eye on them and tries to attempt to scout out new recruits for the Taiga. It's not an easy task as their tenor shouts almost constantly distract her.

Perhaps the next trip would be best done on her own.

The spotted mare is easy to spy against the swaying sea of spring grass. The two babies that follow her make it even easier. Lilliana shakes her head while casting one more mindful glance to where her own colts are (still tossing their heads, still sprinting wildly around like little summer squalls) before coming to approach the younger champagne mare. A girl really, not much older than her Ruth.

"Eurwen,” Lilliana greets fondly before lowering her head and addressing the twins with a gentle smile, "Hello sweetings.”

The chestnut raises a teasing brow when her copper head comes back up. "It seems you brought the Nerinian army with you.” Her blue eyes settle kindly on the cream filly and the smile turns somewhat sheepish as her head inclines over her shoulder, "I’m afraid those two terrors are mine.”

The chestnut mare falls quiet, knowing her fellow Diplomat has already made the necessary introductions. The wind brushes past her and carries forward a scent Lilliana knows. It is one that Velkan brings with him each time he visits the Taiga. The blue and clear scent of Paradise. Her nostrils flare and she regards the young mare with curious eyes, "You come from Ischia?” She asks, intrigued.

LILLIANA

all that i'm after is a life full of laughter
(as long as i'm laughing with you)

art by vhitany

[Loire]

got my head in the clouds
and i'm not coming down

She can feel her heart swelling with joy. Her thoughts quickly turn to the opportunities, the adventures, and wonders she would experience and see. The possibilities here were endless. The dark dreary cascade of clouds that followed her were no longer there. She hadn’t realized it until she finally stopped somewhere in the wide-open field. Loire blinks, questioning, wondering if this was exactly how it was going to be. If everything was finally changing now that she was somewhere else, somewhere far away from the nightmare. It was easy for her to hope—to instantly believe there was a brighter side to it all. If there was no hope in the world then what would be left? Loire simply doesn’t regard the darkness that haunts her dreams every night or the moments she finds herself falling into a trance, remembering some sort of terrible even that happened to her. Did it even happen at all? The white champagne mare always ask herself because sometimes it feels more like a dream and then sometimes it feels all too real, like she really had almost drowned to death by someone else. It was all a blur now. Maybe some day the memory would become clear, and she could make sense of it all finally. The buzzing of the field is nothing but background noise to her, drifting to her thoughts of hope for a better future. It isn’t until a feminine voice draws her back into the world. Loire quickly turns to find a white and pink spotted mare with two little ones in front of her, which she could only guess that had just been born this spring. Instantly, her warm smile returns as she realizes the situation she is in now. Loire listens with every intent to hear what the spotted mare and her two daughters have to stay. She instantly liked the other mare, finding her to be very sweet and motherly. It reminded her much of her own mother (and for a moment she hopes her mother will not freak out when she finds out she has disappeared without a word). Then another mother with two sons of her own, joins their group. The spotted mare—Eurwen she introduced herself as—seems to be well acquainted with the chestnut mare, also introducing her as Lilliana. Loire wonders if both come from Nerine considering how familiar they both are with each other. During all of this, Loire continues to hold her warm smile. She loved being able to witness the love and care the mothers had for their children. It was a welcome addition along with being greeted by the two mares she just met. As the wind drifts, her soft gold mane rustles against her shoulder and gently touches the arch of her neck. A curious look appears in Lilliana’s eyes, followed by an intriguing tone to her question. Loire’s ears swivel forward cautiously, but also curiously. She shouldn’t be surprised that her scent was thick of tropical scents, marking her an islander from Ischia. “Uh,” she says at first softly. “Yes. I just came from Ischia. I grew up there.” The champagne mare can feel her smile fall a little, but she holds it still as much as she can. Of course they would know. It will be okay! She says silently, reassuring her worries for what is to come. If she wanted to get away from Ischia for good, she would need to face it head on. There was no shame in hiding she was from Ischia; it was a lovely place after all Turning back to the previous conversation, Loire turns her gold eyes onto Eurwen. “It’s very nice to meet you, Eurwen, along with your girls.” She says glancing to each of the small fillies at the spotted mare’s side. Loire then turns to the chestnut mare once again. “And you as well, Lilliana. Boys will be boys. My brother was a little terror growing up, but they always mean well.” A soft laugh follows her whimsical words. “And I am Loire!” She says with a bob of her head, her smile growing a little more now. “Are you both from Nerine?”

Loire

the windwalker

@[Eurwen] @[lilliana]

[Eurwen]

Eurwen

the secret of walking on water
is knowing where the rocks lie

The young mare before her is as radiant as can be; Eurwen can’t help but smile though Fechín knows exactly how boring diplomacy is already, and the spotted mare is for a heartbeat distracted while her adventurous dark green overo daughter sniffs Nashua and wrinkles her nose. ”You need a bath.” As if she doesn’t need one herself.

The spotted mare pulls on the girl’s metallic-colored mane, so similar to her own. ”Behave,” she commands her - knowing that the second she turns back to the creamy-golden young lady, the overo will pull faces. Eurwen smiles apologetically at the other mares and ruffles Brienna’s mane affectionately, though she does so a bit distracted, focusing on the topic of conversation- Ischia.

”I’ve always wondered what Ischia is like. Is your family well?” she asks the young mare purely for conversation-making, as the knabstrup-hybrid mare knows it’s more important to make pleasant conversation than to make a mighty Nerine-impression on her; if Loire wants to find a home, she’ll need to be at ease with whoever recruits her.

She loses track of her daughters and Lilli’s sons in the conversation, but then, she figures it won’t do the foals much harm. Loire has something familiar about her that Eurwen can’t quite place, and she’s curious to find out what it is. At any rate, she feels like the girl is one of her own kind, so to speak; kind and caring, and with an interest in people. She’d fit in Nerine or Taiga, she is sure; depending on how outgoing she truly is, either one would do.

@[lilliana] @[Loire]

[lilliana]

She keeps a watchful gaze on the two colts who romp through the open Meadow while glancing respectfully back at the champagne mare and appreciating the kind (and gracious) way she holds herself. Kindness, while something that can be taught, is something as inherent in nature as the way their ancestors had known to flee from predators. It is something that can be taught but it comes off in waves from the mare before her as something as natural as an Ischian tide.

This one, the chestnut mare thinks, would do well in the Diplomatic ranks of Nerine or Taiga.

"It must have been a wonderful place to grow up,” says the copper mare. Ischia is perhaps one of the most beautiful places in Beqanna. Her head tilts a little, remembering something Velkan had once told her. "I hear the beaches glow at night,” she replies. Her smile warms thinking about the way he mentioned the lovely blue glow that illuminated them almost every evening. Nothing like Taiga and her ghosts.

"Did you ever pretend you were dancing across the night sky?” she gently teases as she eyes the soft glow emanating from the cream filly. She could have very well been her own star, lighting up the beaches and waves alike. The smile slips a little on the girls’ face and Lilliana can feel her own expression falter with confusion. What about a place as beautiful as Ischia would make her smile fade?

Perhaps she aches for home. Lilliana knows about those first steps into a new life and what it is like to leave the old one behind you. She still mourns for her childhood home - still grieves for the family that she left behind her. Her old life, it seems, is as much a part of her as this new one is. Determined to see their earlier warmth returned, the Taigan mare wills her smile.

"I know they do,” she says with playful exasperation but her blue eyes come to rest lovingly on them. Her boys are rambunctious and often at odds with each other but there is adoration glowing in her expression. She watches the twins unaware as Nashua rolls his eyes at Fechin who insists he needs a bath. Lilliana catches his gaze as he smiles mischievously to the filly and ruffles his auburn wings. The stern (for her) look she gives her firstborn makes him lower his head before Yanhua tackles his brother from the back and like that, both boys are back to racing again.

Little spitfires, she thinks.

At the mention that Eurwen has never seen Ischia, it strikes an idea in Lilliana. Nerine was overdue for kingdom visits. Perhaps a trip to the island would be beneficial for both the North and West.

It's an idea, anyway.

"It’s lovely to meet you, Loire.” Lilli finishes that thought with a smile. "And sort of.” She adds with a playful glance to spotted Eurwen. "Eurwen is a diplomat for Nerine but I come from Taiga, which is a territory of it.” Perhaps the girl knows this and the information that Lilliana gives is redundant. She dismisses the thought with a roll of her slender shoulders. "Eurwen and I recruit together occasionally,” the Taigan Ambassador says fondly as she turns her attention to the Nerinian mare and her two daughters.

Lilli glances back to @[Loire] before softly adding, "We’re all looking to build a future out here. Sometimes it's nice to have more than one way forward.”

LILLIANA

all that i'm after is a life full of laughter
(as long as i'm laughing with you)

art by vhitany

[Loire]

got my head in the clouds
and i'm not coming down

A gentle smile curled on her lips as she watches the two mothers and their offspring. Loire couldn’t help but smile at what she was seeing now. It remined her of her own family. Growing up with several siblings had been one of her favorite memories. She didn’t mind the teasing and playful jabs Aeolus threw at her or Donny and Millie being a handful at times. But when she starts thinking about them all, she realizes she will miss meeting her newest siblings. A soft flicker of sadness touches her eyes for a moment. Maybe I should go back, she thinks but the chest mare’s question pulls her back to the conversation. “It is a very wonderful place. I was very blessed to grow up there,” she says with a nod of her head in agreement. Loire wouldn’t have wanted to grow up anywhere else. “They do! Such a beautiful blue color. The nights in Ischia were one of my favorites.” The quiet and stillness of the night had given her a sense of peace, when the chatter the jungle island became nothing but a soft whisper. Her lips curve up into a soft smirk at Lilliana’s gentle tease. “I never thought of doing that before,” she admits because she certainly would have if she knew she could fly before. Turning her attention to Eurwen, Loire excitedly tells her without a second thought “You must see it sometime!” She knew that she might never find a place like Ischia anywhere else. “I would be happy to be a guide if you ever needed one,” she says more calmly as her mind turns to Eurwen’s question about her family’s well-being and thinks her mother would perhaps appreciate knowing she was alright after leaving Ischia without a word. “My family is well. There isn’t too much to worry about on the island, except my mother is always busy looking after everyone.” Loire doesn’t feel the need to mention her mother is the Dame of Ischia. It was only simple information, but she doesn’t really realize how much of her lineage and relationships with other Ischians ties herself to these two mares. Loire couldn’t help but be happy where she was now. The champagne mare was surprised to find friendly strangers immediately on her arrival to the mainland. She knew of the stories that came from the mainland—wars and politics were filled with them. However, she had never expected it to be quite like this. Listening to the chestnut mare talking about other lands, she recognizes the places immediately. She knew some things about Nerine and Taiga but deciding if one of these places were to be her new home felt strange. She was trading away the only place she has known for something unknown—it was exciting and scary at the same time. “Well, it’s good knowing you don’t have to both try to fight over me.” The champagne mare laughs softly as she imagines how overwhelming it might be for her to decide between two who would try their best to persuade her. Eurwen and Lilliana gave her a much better option, either way it would benefit both. “I know a bit about your homes, but I have never been to any of them before. Can you tell me about them? What is your favorite part about your homes?”

Loire

the windwalker

@[lilliana] @[Eurwen]

[Eurwen]

Eurwen

the secret of walking on water
is knowing where the rocks lie

As Lilli seems a bit surprised by Eurwen’s comment about Ischia, she smiles a little. She remembers then, that she once promised the mare a more detailed backstory, but now that she remembers, they are yet again conversing with a new recruit. She is amused by the thought, though she quickly focuses back on the younger, cream-white mare. ”I would very much like that. I suppose we’ll need to strengthen our ties with the Ischians once more, though I can’t blame them for forgetting about the mainland.” Tropical paradise. The idea sounds nice, though she thinks she might grow restless there.

”Nerine is the area kingdom, and as such perhaps has a little more responsibility to offer if you’re looking for a job. Taiga is the misty redwood forest directly south of it, and a territory that others may be rightfully jealous of.” she starts with a bit of a grin. ”Nerine itself is surrounded by the sea on the other sides, but situated high on the rocks. I guess those rocks could be taken as a metaphor for some of our residents,” she chuckles. ”You’d have to climb down to reach the waters, but I promise it’s worth the trip at least once. Many seaside coves are still undiscovered, and some have little lakes inside, or pretty stones, or gleaming algae. My mother once told me there were a few with actually glowing algae too, but I haven’t found one yet. Maybe it’s just the one.

To be honest, my favourite thing to do is to run to the top the cliffs and listen to the wind and sea. It reminds me that the world is bigger than my own place, and that there is always new adventures to be found. It’s a kind of freedom we might forget sometimes in our everyday lives. The sunsets are also lovely with that immense view, or if you go to the northern point at night, you may see their blue lights on a clear evening.”

To her, the wind and sea are everything - a home as sturdy and stubborn as the rocks it was built on, sure, but with freedom in the hearts of their residents, as well. She clearly is fond of the place, she knows, but she turns to her red copper friend instead - ”I bet Lilli has more right to tell you all about Taiga,” the spotted mare smiles, inviting her to tell more about the forest to the south,

@[lilliana] @[Loire]