i am a leaf on the wind

Lyanna had never been likely to be particularly tall. The women in her family rarely were. Her lines came from the same few places, really. Morham and the surrounding kingdoms didn’t have quite the same immigration rate as Helovia seemed to. Sure, new horses came into the kingdoms around, and there were enough kingdoms to keep the bloodlines clean. But still, most of the horses in the area were similar enough that, after a time, they’d all started to look somewhat the same.

You wouldn’t find horses like Tembovu in Morham. You would find horses like Brisa and Lyanna. And for this reason, walking through such a beautiful (albeit also so unlikely) maze of bamboo and greenery, Lyanna feels at home in a way she hasn’t for a while. This is the life she knows how to lead. This life of pleasant small talk and not craning her neck to look up at someone.

Even if she is, technically, completely lost at the moment, she finds that this afternoon is quickly becoming rather pleasant. Thoughts of Morham slip in, but ones that make her smile slightly, thinking of afternoons spent with some of the neighboring princesses when they were visiting, walking the forests of Morham or the gardens of Romane. She could see Brisa fitting right into that life. Little does Lyanna know she is, in fact, talking to the Czarina of the Falls. Lyanna still doesn’t have much connection to the politics of Helovia yet though, not like in Morham. Though perhaps with her new standing in the Edge, that would change.

She ruffles her feathers slightly at Brisa’s comment that she probably knows the land better than she thinks. “Ah, yes, but it really does help when you can cheat your way around.” She laughs slightly. It was, really, a gift to have wings. They are the only reason she isn’t hopelessly lost in Helovia. Not that she can fly everywhere, but of course, those are the places she knows the least. “It seems to be a trend, horses moving herds in Helovia. Is it common, or is it just the horses I run into?” She’s not trying to be nosey, but rather, make conversation and perhaps learn something. She doesn’t know the history here, of wars or raids or anything else. All she knows is where she’s from, horses mostly stayed put.

The mention of the Falls brings a smile to Brisa’s face, and it’s clear she cares for her home. The Edge doesn’t make Lyanna smile quite like that. But it’s getting better. Getting closer to home. They have given her a rank and responsibilities, and these things help her feel like it really might be home. They also weigh her down with fear that she will fail. This isn’t the life she was groomed for, but she can learn. “Oh, that sounds beautiful. I would love to visit one day, if that would be okay. I’ve never seen a waterfall up close.” She passed plenty as she fled Morham, but she’d never stopped to enjoy the beauty or power of one before.

“What do you do in the Falls?” she adds, hoping she’s not asking too many questions. But Brisa seems kind, and willing to talk, and Lyanna sometimes can’t help the questions. There are always so many here, so much yet for her to learn. And so she asks.

watch how i soar.

lyanna