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The muted sound of snow shifting underfoot ricocheted off my white-tipped ears, sounding like the loud booms of a thunder storm compared to the deathly silence that encompassed the frosted forest. I felt my muscles tense beneath my hide as my eyelids snapped open, revealing the sharp cerulean orbs, various hues of gold and indigo churning inside of the irises like a tempest of brilliant color. From underneath the shade of a thick cocoa forelock, my eyes skimmed the surroundings for the threat of danger. My thin spotted pelt rippled over my neck as I turned my face slightly to view behind me.
A black figure then entered my peripheral vision, causing the turmoil inside my head to diminish. It was but a filly, or a young yearling, trailing behind my path like a shadow or apparition. Surprise distorted the delicate features of my amber face before returning to its normal mask. How the young creature had been able to move without a sound seemed to stupefy me, as normally foals were often clumsy on their lanky limbs. Maybe this one had grown out of that awkward stage, or maybe it was just a misgiving on my part. I had never liked being around the younger ones so I did not truly know of their habits, and my own foal-hood seemed dim in the depths of my mind, tucked firmly away to avoid any further pain of my past.
My tanned brow furrowed and my head cocked to the side as I wondered how to approach this child. A quiet irritated snout passed my nostrils at my own lack of social skills, sending a puff of tiny crystals into the chilly air. I then pivoted my body and took a few easy lithe strides toward the small filly, closing the small space between us.
I struggled to form my features to what I supposed one would approach a child—nurturing and soft compared to my normal sharp, cold glare. "Hello, little one." I purred, my average vocals transformed into the tender tone I recalled hearing in my own youth. "Why are you wandering in the forest alone and so close to dusk?" While keeping my open façade, I let my eyes examine the young fae, still ever so cautious.
The filly had an obsidian pelt darker than the night sky, but that was not what intrigued me the most. What was most interesting out the yearling was the stub of an onyx horn jutting out from her skull, paired with two black, red, and white feathery appendages. In my life, I had come across many winged beasts of the sky and horned unicorns, but never have I seen one adorning both rarities.
As my strange predatory eyes traveled back to the onyx orbs of the creature in front of me, curiosity caused the colored flecks in them to twinkle, and my ashy maw flickered slightly upward in a whisper of a smile.
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