Alysanne

In all her time at Helovia, all the time she had considered this place her home, she had never visited here. She had been meaning to, the fact that there was somewhere else she had yet to discover had always tickled the back of her mind. The Veins! Where they could come pay respect to the Gods of this land.

Or, at least, that was her intention. Before she had left she had heard rumours of the new island over the Veins but it wasn’t until now that she had seen it with her own eyes and oh, it was beautiful. It was completely on impulse that her wings spread – as though that new land was calling to her, pulling her in. And surely, there was an intense amount of curiosity about it.

She had missed so much!

But she couldn’t get sidetracked now, she had a mission. Perhaps she should have visited the Veins sooner, should have made more of an effort to learn about the gods and pay her respects. Because she did respect them, after all, and admired them. And even, perhaps, there was a little bit of fear mingled in with that respect as well. Would they be more like demons or angels? Or were they something entirely new? With the memories of her demon attack still fresh in her mind she was not willing to get herself in a similar situation again.

So when she landed upon the grassy banks of the river she felt cautious beneath the light of the setting sun. Evening would be here soon and the moon would rise.

She had been intending to leave the gift she bore for the Moon Goddess on her altar and she was quite uncertain what to do with it now. The bright yellow flower was held carefully by Hemlock in his beak as he perched between her ears. The pair found a quiet spot – she was wishing she had thought to talk to Kahlua first. Maybe her dear friend would have some pointers on how to summon the Goddess.

Well, she was just going to have to make it up as she went along.

Without needing any encouragement, Hemlock lifted off her head and gently placed the evening primrose he had been carrying on a bed of soft clover. The flower that she had brought back from her visit with her son had been specially selected – it was one of those rare, lovely little blooms that opened for the moon, not the sun. Even the picked bud would transform tonight. But like with so many plants, there was so much more to the plant. It had healing properties; it could help someone who was in pain.

And that was precisely what Alysanne wanted to be able to do as well. The nerves were settling in – words were never particularly hard to come by for the painted pegasus but as Hemlock returned to his perch – jingling the glass headband here – she just wasn’t sure how to go about this. She had no idea what to say.

It was still just an idea, what she wanted to seek from the Moon, but perhaps she might be able to help make it a reality. Emerald eyes closed as she sought them – the thoughts and words to send out. Finally, as the sun slipped below the horizon of Helovia below, her gentle voice entered the crisp, evening air. “Beautiful Mother Moon, if you have a moment to spare – I would like to request your help.”