Unlike many others in Helovia, the ocean mare is not frightened of the Deep Forest. Even as the day’s light slowly slips away, shadows reaching to darken the forest floor, there is no fear that thrums in her heart. This is not because she is bolder than anyone else (while she can certainly summon the courage she needs, Tiamat knows that there are those who are much more brave than she)—but simply because it is here, where nature is thick and thriving with life, that she feels at peace. Her ignorance of the world’s black secrets shelters her, serenity swelling in her breast where perhaps caution should.

Sighing contentedly with a quiet smile softening her lips, Tiamat ambles through the trees. Cloven hooves pick their way daintily through the underbrush, following the guidance of the ground beneath, no particular destination in mind as she allows nature to direct her where it will. The long hair on her lion tail brushes the cool ground, swaying with her hips before sweeping to the side, her movement halting for a moment. Gently, she presses a satin muzzle against the dark bark of a tree. “Hello, family,” she breathes happily, her spirits buoyed by the fresh, earthy scent that fills her nostrils.

She can almost hear the tree sigh in response. This—this intimate connection with nature and all of its creatures—is a part of her, so ingrained in every fiber of her being, that one could not hope to separate it. Tiamat does not know where, or what, she would be without this bond. After all, can you expect any different from a child of nature? Daughter of the ocean and sky, Tiamat cherishes these connections with every beat of her tender heart.

Trailing her muzzle forward, the ocean mare pulls away from the tree, continuing her stroll through the forest. It isn’t long before her sister stars come out to play, dancing above in the reflection of her eyes, time passing easily beneath their watchful glow. So entranced is she by nature’s wondrous beauty, that Tiamat does not recognize it at first. Something is…off. Something is not right. The wood stirs uneasily around her, creatures of both night and day rustling through the darkness, a heavy anxiousness hanging over their heads.

The blue mare pauses, tail twitching nervously and her head tilting to the side as she peers through the trees. The acrid smell of smoke swirls to congest the air, burning her nostrils and stinging her eyes—suddenly, remembering the winter nights of the Basin, understanding hits her with a chill of horror. She sees the glow as she pivots, cloven hooves stumbling as she surges forward, the flames quickly bursting forth to lick at her heels.

She runs.

How did this happen?! The mare coughs, lowering her head to her shoulders and willing her muscles to move faster, doe-eyes wild with fright. “IS ANYBODY OUT THERE!?” She screams into the hot night, her healer’s heart never forgetting the fate of others, despite her own primal need to survive. Reaching down and slowing her pace, Tiamat ushers the small woodland creature forward, caring for their safety just as much—if not more—than she does her own. With the flames reduced to an ominous glow behind her, the ocean mare dares to stop. Frantically, she glances around, calling out again for anyone who might be near. Tears stream down her cheeks, both from the smoke and from this terrible destruction.

notes; WOO EXCITED!!!:D