amaris

The young queen felt more at home in the company of the dragon than she had with most equine-blooded creatures she had met. Dragons were honest, they seemed to see the soul of a person rather than the physical traits that those of her other race saw. How long had it been since she had summoned her friends from the otherplace and felt their loving acceptance? Too long, she thought sadly, and yet still she did not summon them, she refused to touch the magic that resided so strongly within her - she did not deserve their love nor their acceptance, for she was no queen, not to them, not truly - not to anyone. But the red before her treated her as such anyway, and Amaris allowed the small blossom of hope to open up within her, the thin ray of light that might one day grow into the inferno that was once her passion for life. The inferno was a memory now, a vague idea in the back of her mind. Amaris had forgotten what passion was - she had forgotten was life was. She needed her dragons more than she cared to admit, but Vérzés was substantial enough for her for now - he had ignited some sparks reminiscent of the old passion that had fuelled her every move. She dared not think about what would happen when he and his bonded left her vicinity again.

A smile, a rare sight on her scaled lips in recent times, shadowed her maw as the cold questioned her understanding of his name. Though she would not summon them, she would always speak of her brethren kindly, with love and that almost-forgotten passion they gave her. "Aye," she said softly, "the dragons my magic allows me to summon come from many different lands, and their minds are woven in many different tongues. I have done my best to learn them all though there are plenty I am yet to hear and plenty more I will never know." The gift of language was just one aspect of her magic - what Amaris craved, what she needed was the soul-awakening her magic allowed her to feel, the bonds, however brief, were real enough to her. She had gone seasons without her magic before, she could survive without it - that wasn't the point.

She needed it now, and yet she refused it now.

The dragonmare listened to the tale the colt spoke of how he came to feel the bond between he and his dragon. Though the girl felt somewhat guilty for her sharp words, she had allowed a quiet amusement to seep into her gaze - she wasn't laughing at him, nor mocking him, but simply enjoying the tale for what it was - the bond was a magnificent thing, a truly wondrous and unique event that was surely different for every one who experienced it. There was always one similarity - souls were tied inexorably together, bound by a substance stronger than anything physical in the lands. It was a metaphysical creation, a twine crafted from aether and starstuff, that none could possible hope to understand in its complexity. A bond that can only be truly severed by death was surely a powerful thing - she could not help but feel some small joy that this strong young lad had experienced it.

"She recognised the strength of your soul," Amaris purred softly across the space that separated them. Growing somewhat serious again, however, the girl's expression hardened once more, and she tilted her tiara slightly, as if she were looking at him from another angle, all the better to peer deeper into his soul.

"Do not disappoint her."

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@[Volterra]