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Ophelia returned to the Dragon's Throat, feeling a knot worming in her gut with every step. Tinek flew ahead, a silver spark in the sky. Her cloven hooves missed the snow, and as she felt sand between her toes, she realized that this place could never be home, even through it was full of wonderful individuals whom she thought of so fondly. Even Kri. She very much respected the lead mare, but the fact that her identity was stolen was something that she could not ignore. How did no one know until now that two, small prisoners could pretend to be someone else and even take their memories? That was dangerous. What if the two had impersonated Kri herself?
She walked up to the tree, sighing softly. Her expression was troubled, and Tinek landed on a rock nearby, red eyes keeping a lookout for anyone coming to speak to his bonded. The silver spotted Kri and let out an excited trill, dancing around between Ophelia's legs. One day, he would be too big for such antics, but for now, he should enjoy being a child. Ophelia's ears tilted back nervously, sorrow in her expression. "Kri?" she asked quietly to call the mare's attention to her words. Ophelia moved closer, her neck lowered in deference to the mare's superior position.
"I need to leave," she replied. "I searched my sister's memories and saw what happened between you and my father, but I was not there. The two, white twins you are keeping prisoner stole my identity." The mare's expression was cracking, and her two colored eyes seemed to melt as they glassed over. Still, she set her jaw stubbornly, determined to continue. "They took my mind, Kri," she said, her words weighing heavily. "The one place that I find sanctuary in, and they... took it from me. Without thought. Without regret, and what is worse, they impersonated me and caused a brief rift with myself and my sister. I could only imagine the disaster it could have caused if they had taken your identity instead."
Ophelia cast her gaze down to her cloven toes. "I appreciate your faith in me as a sleuth, and I hope that I have served and warned you well. Olema and Surema will most likely be excellent replacements for me, but I cannot be responsible for that power. I am not a parent. I cannot raise them to be moral and follow the same code that I would; I would never reach into someone's mind unless absolutely necessary or if I have permission, but they do not have the same morals. They are children who need guidance, but I am not a mother." The young mare sighed, and Tinek trilled at Kri, making grabbing motions with his claws toward her strange, pretty wings.
"I hope that even if you do not agree with my decision to leave, that you will respect it and myself. If I hear any more news about a threat toward you or your own, I will pass the information along. I still have loyalty to you and all my friends here, but I do not belong." This was the most Ophelia had spoken in a very long time, and she had finally been honest with her feelings. She offered a small smile. "I believe that Xira would make an excellent immediate replacement for me, as she is both tenacious and exploratory. Until then, I will be far north of here, in the snow."
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