The mare stood sodden under the leafy cover of the woods, paused for the moment to observe her surroundings while her breath steamed in the chill air. The rain had come suddenly and heavily, taking Ilore by surprise despite the clouds above having threatened to do so for sometime. Above the sky still parted in tears and the soothing tell-tale pitter-patter filled the calm wood with sound. Most would have found it relaxing but Ilore could only find irritation in her heart that she was damp and cold. Droplets flew from the cremello's coat as she shivered arbitrarily across her shoulders and hindquarters while water continued to drip incessantly from both her mane and tail as if to mock her efforts of drying herself.

With a curt flick of her head the mare removed a pesky bit of forelock from her face so that her amber eyes could properly take note of the area. These woods were not familiar to her in the least, nor had the landscape been for sometime in her travels. Had she found somewhere new? Was that prospect frightening or exciting? Perhaps a little of both. For the first time in a long time Ilore....felt something. She couldn't say what she felt but the pressure of it tumbled and grew in her chest like a maddened bird, urging her on. It was almost like an influence or presence that was being emitted by the earth beneath her feet. The notion made Ilore's maw curl into a crooked smile. Strange how that reminded her of a story she heard once, long ago.

With stiffness starting to settle in her limbs Ilore decided it was time to move on and picked up a light trot then, briefly passing over a few scattered puddles that lay in broken rows across the forest floor. What she saw would have made her laugh if the mare were in a more humorous mood. Ilore was no princess incarnate, rather she seemed like an image of death. Pale as a ghost, there was no hiding her lanky, ungainly frame and the clinging fur only aided in accenting the boney aspects of her appearance. Certainly she was a fright to behold.

Suddenly Ilore's ears perked at a sound just a little ways off. At once her head whipped towards the source as she cautiously slowed herself to a halt, her amber eyes placed firmly to await whatever was to appear. Part of her questioned her motive for stopping and planned ahead for the need to escape in case she would live to regret this choice but somehow Ilore felt it wasn't to be necessary for once. Maybe.