I WILL LIVE FOR YOU


For some time, as he walked, Xanthos wondered if he should simply wait at the borders and let out a call to make his presence known. Even if Mirage had given him an open invitation to this misty land, he still felt an intruder, at least for now. The underlying worry of how the rest of the herd would react to him was neverending, but what was he to do? He would do his best to make peace in whatever ways possible, showing that despite everyone's thoughts, not all of the Basin unicorns were the same.

The grullo came to a sudden halt, his head snapping up and black-tipped ears twitching foward. A melodious call cut through the air, familiar in tone, yet different all at once. It was Mirage, he knew, and he could only guess that she had returned to her normal, hooved, equine figure. There was a ripple of excitement deep within his chest before he returned the call, gentle, floating on the winds, simply allowing the mare a simpler way to find him if she hadn't already.

She seemed to appear before his very eyes, and at her sight, the beginning of a smile began to pull at his black lips. He couldn't explain the joy he felt at seeing Mirage like this; out of the Basin, full of joy and pride to be back in her home, happy.

"Mirage," he spoke up, delightedly helping to close the space between them. There was no hesitance when he stretched his velveteen muzzle out towards her, allowing them to touch briefly in a welcoming gesture. It may have been something simple, so trivial that he shouldn't have hardly cared, but already, he felt like he belonged here. His attention went to the golden dragon perched upon the Weyrleader's nape, and with a short chuckle, he reached up to greet Akaith as well. He was glad to see the little dragon had changed her opinion of him since their capture.

The trio headed for a nearby stream, then, Xanthos trailing along at a comfortable distance from the Dragonheart. He couldn't help but gaze at the wound upon her shoulder as they went along, for it did look quite grisly and painful, but ever since he'd seen the mare's transformation... Well, he expected that she was tougher than one might think at first, and she had more than likely dealt with worse. When they arrived at the stream, the grullo was beyond eager to plunge his lips into the crisp waters, sucking down the water that would surely do wonders to cool his body.

When he had drank his fill, he lifted his head and breathed a sigh before returning his gaze to the Weyrleader. There were a thousand emotions dancing in his golden eyes, but none shown more brightly than his happiness. "Thank you, Mirage; I'll never be able to thank you enough. It already feels wonderous to be here. I'm glad to see that you made it back without trouble." For if he had learned otherwise, he wasn't sure what he would do.

A moment later, the grullo remembered the dried, unsightly blood melded into his coat, and knew that it would be best to rid himself of it before anyone else showed up. Excusing himself, he made his way into the cool waters and set to washing the stains away. It was somewhat of a difficult task, considering the shallow depth of the stream, but eventually, he had done what he could to cleanse himself. A spot or two might have remained, but there was nowhere near as much as before.

Only after giving a shake of his body did the grullo step out from the stream, his attention immediately settling back upon the ebony body that was Mirage. He had debated upon whether or not he should wait to bombard the mare with questions, and so deciding to settle somewhere in the middle, he asked one. "Mirage," he began, his lips pursing for a moment as he thought on his exact words, "I have been thinking, all the while that I ran here... I must do something for you; I don't want to be useless as I was within the Basin. What ranks are available for me? I understand that I will have to work for it, but I'm prepared."

BEFORE I DIE