The cold of frostfall numbs the hunter into a submission of his own self. There is no one left within him but an other, someone he cannot understand and someone to whom he cannot speak. He shifts relentlessly into other forms, doing everything he can to see in flashes of reflection, in flashes of his own companion's mind, anyone but himself.

It is in the form of Anaan that he walks towards the ocean in this relentless cold, and in that form that he will stay for a time. He and his companion are cloaked in the quiet silence of light, soundless and barely bound to the earth. He arrives wordlessly alongside a young filly, looking over the patches on her coat with the kindness of a gentle wisdom.

Ah, she too bears spots.

Manhattan smiles beneath the cloak that covers them and nudges Anaan's thick pillars. Though she has not forgiven Knox, Anaan is one she will always comfort like a child. Different ones, the black dog thinks to the grandsire, nosing his scars with kindness. She parts from him only briefly, stepping closer to the short and letting its chill lap at her paws.

The hunter and bonded listen intently to the young mare's pleas. Who is she speaking to, and what is she hoping for? Anaan's brow wrinkles and his lips lift in a silent nicker. The child is too sad, he thinks, too sorrowful for her youth.

But Manhattan can say nothing to that. She too remembers a child so sad and lost, and she remembers being a child alongside him. But where, she wonders with a hopeless glance up at the shifted form beside her, where has he gone now, other than into darkness?

When the other pair appears, the hunter perks. There is a feeling, maybe joy, in the eyes of the other unicorn who draws near. Knox watches through Anaan's dark eyes as the scene unfolds with the swiftness of familiarity--Manhattan smiles to herself as she stands firm in the waves and the massive hellhound jumps about and away. There is a pride in her heart, brought on by the steeling of her life.They are family, the hunter thinks in Anaan's gentle tones. He sees the affection held by the elder mare, watches as it intrudes and juxtaposes the contemplation of the filly as she walks into the water.

The hunter's ears perk at the sound of the elder one's words. A herd meeting? Perhaps he can learn something, then.

At his feet, Manhattan sits and bares her teeth in disgust.

All beauty, this family. And you think of spying on herds.

He is not listening, his eyes are caught, rapt, on the countenances of the mare and filly before him.

This lesson will be lost, Manhattan thinks again. And she thinks of his family that he has forced out of his life, and the family that she too has lost as a result. She scowls at his selfishness.

You could have this, too.


""

[[SORRY FOR THE WAIT I SUCK @[Arya] @[Hotaru]. Since he's cloaked you don't need to wait for me in post order for the future, though I will try and be quicker now. Class ends soon and then I go off busy!]]