I WILL LIVE FOR YOU

He had to get away, if only for a little while, from the Edge. It was obvious that he was not well liked, save for the great Weyrleader, although could he really blame anyone? He had taken their leader away, taken her to the most dangerous territory throughout all of Helovia, and had put her in grave danger. Even now the grullo was surprised that not a single soul had attempted to harm the ebony leader, the very one who had claimed the unicorns' old home, the one they had always wanted to get their grimy little hands on. But none had come.

Xanthos would have to work hard to gain the trust of those residing within the Edge, no doubtedly harder than anyone else had been forced to do. He was up to the challenge, however, for all he wanted, was a place to finally call home.

Today's outting had been to simply get away from the pressures of what had been going on, and he could only hope that it wouldn't be looked upon as a suspicious act. Keeping himself at a lengthy, steady trot, the stallion welcomed the feel of the tall grasses brushing and tickling against his striped legs. It was a pleasant change from the cold, bitter snow he had found himself upon for nearly the past two seasons. Here, he could feel the warmth of Birdsong, and his ever thick coat had begun to shed quickly. Everything was a simple pleasure, something he had once taken for granted before dooming himself to the Steppe. Oh, how we wished he could go back and change that fateful decision.

Coming upon a towering red oak, the grullo came to a halt, allowing the shade to engulf him. Looking out across the expanse of land, Xanthos spotted the gentle, winding stream that passed through the meadow. The sound of it was distant and all too calming, and soon, the grullo found himself in a lax stance, a hind leg cocked and supporting the majority of his weight. A pesky bout of flies had made themselves quite at home on his flank, but they were evicted rather quickly by a snap of his tail.

It was simply a day to try and relax, and allow the stresses that had become his life to disappear. He cared not if he remained unbothered and in silence, listening to the rhthymic churn of water in the distance, or the sing-song chirps of birds up in the trees above. So long as Psyche's black form didn't come racing across the meadow, he was happy.

BEFORE I DIE