"I wanted that," the moss-roan mare hissed bitterly as the stranger stepped forward so inconsiderately to intercept her subtle manoeuvring. Vivid eyes, seething and indignant, passed briefly across both mare and the stallion, before Xira turned with an unfurling wingspan and slipped into the air. Undoubtedly she had misinterpreted these new wooded foothills - they were nothing like the old - and horses seemed to pop-up right wherever she wanted to slither by undetected. They were like ants upon the dead, incessant little pests that seemed to cover every square inch of this patch. Irritating...

She would scout a little more thoroughly next time, and take her time. Obviously, she was out of practice (evidently she needed more). The small moss-roan wheeled sharply this way and that, dodging trees and their interwoven branches until she had breached the fluttering canopy altogether. Xira gained momentum quickly thereafter and lifted ever higher until she had reached the point of Kye's lofty elevation. The falcon had been monitoring the situation carefully, though even her keen eyes had been no match for the show of force below. Together they turned south until their flightpath drew along a clean line towards the familiar Threshold.

Cunning eyes glared down upon the spindly, sparse tips of the weathered old trees. Xira had absolutely no desire to fall again upon its stinking soil, waste another day of her life swanning amid hordes of weary travellers. The whiners and the wounded; self-entitled victims and those in between, who sought only to win themselves favour by adding numbers to pointlessly sociable herd-groups... she scoffed bluntly, loudly, and her lungs filled with crisp evening air as she drew another long breath. No. The curly-coated mare had no interest in their mundane way of life, no need for righteous leaders and spineless peons. She would not fall into their trap again - well, not without a bloody good reason. There were other priorities, and thought of them shattered the cynical pinch which had overwhelmed her expression...

The roots of Earth's flower had through the years delved beneath the thick canvasing carpet of her hair. Perhaps it was for that reason alone it had weathered her aimless wandering so well - Xira had cared for it diligently though. It sailed through the brisk autumn air above, caught in the drag of its host's swift journey, but many petals remained regardless and still it didn't wilt. Do you remember the way? Kye pried, curious, because she certainly did not herself. The mare's striking eyes closed momentarily, before she sighed heavily, no, and dipped down her wings. I suppose we cannot avoid this place then, their bond murmured impatiently.

Xira sank quickly beneath the towering tree tops, while Kye hovered above - as she normally did - watching with cunning raptor awareness all that was happening below. The area was putrid, just as the Pegasus remembered, reeking of horse and littered with all the waste they'd left behind. Broad nostrils rattled loudly, as she waited, confident that there would be somebody nearby, anticipating her arrival; or that of anybody who might potentially build numbers in a herd.