Kahlua

The golden queen was quite correct in her assumptions. Kahlua did not think of the heavy emphasis on her name as chastising, as correcting her for wronging the golden queen. Indeed she never would have, having never expected any of her friends or allies or acquaintances or enemies to address her as Queen Kahlua or anything similar. And darling Illynx may have set the painted girl to quaking in her boots had the poor girl not already been shaking. If her knees were maracas, they would have been playing a lovely song.

Not that she thought very much, but the queen had been given plenty of time to consider her actions while the Basin Lady had made her way from within. While she had watched Illynx's practiced trot, she realized that she was getting more than she had bargained for. In her mind she had imagined a friendly chat, a quick stop by to say hello and ponder their differences and then Kahlua would be off, back to wander around for a little longer before she decided to return home. Ah... a dreamer's ideals are amusing in retrospect.

Still, of all the things that she was now faced with, the queen had least of all expected a foal. A foal. A child! Her blue eyes turned to the thing suspiciously for a moment, although not unkindly, hoping she was not expected to make nice with him. It wasn't that children were inherently bad. It was rather that children embodied the very idea of being tied down. After all, the queen could hardly stand the few weeks she had been boarded up within the hallowed draconian forest. Just being forced to ponder the idea of being held down with child for months on end- the pregnancy and then the caring for the thing after it's birth... No. Motherhood was not for the queen. That was for certain.

“Thank you for meeting me,” she answered to the golden wench. Somebody better at faking, at lying, would have turned their face into a sugary smile and said it was a beautiful pleasure to see Illynx again. Kahlua could not do this. It was not that she instinctively hated the woman for the horn she wore atop her head (Eva would have killed her for even thinking such a thing) but rather Kahlua was nervous because of the stories that made up their history together.

In an effort to distract the child, perhaps keep him occupied for a moment, the queen lowered her head to the flower and let the mechanized scorpion crawl from her forelock to the ground motioning it over to the child where it clicked and whirred as it tried to crawl about his hooves without getting trampled. It wasn't like her to share, but... lesser of two evils. She hoped it would keep the horse-child, Rikyn amused long enough to get this conversation she didn't exactly want to have over with.

But how to start?

The queen hemmed and hawed, shifted and swayed, tried to consider where to start and to remember that she was not here to change any minds but rather to have an open and honest discussion. Perhaps that was the best place to start? “I'm here on a quest from the gods.” Perhaps it would make Illynx less willing to help her, to know that she would be helping the painted queen get a gift from the heavens or perhaps she would understand and be willing to help. Kahlua could only hope the latter, though she did not have much faith. And besides... how to say racist without really saying racist? It wouldn't do to destroy the flimsy string of alliance that tied her herd to the basin. The queen was not very smart, but she was learning. “I'm supposed to talk to someone who... prefers the company of their own kind. To discuss their... philosophy. And why they feel that way.” She looked hesitantly to the golden queen, brow furrowing as she tried to decide if she had said the magic combination of words that would open the fellow queen's heart to her without getting her skewered. “Perhaps you can help me find someone who might... be willing to help me?” There. No pressure on Illynx now... she hoped. Kahlua frowned. She had never been very good at this.

All the while, the queen felt magic building beneath her skin- her rank magic, her gift from the Lady Moon. She may not need it but still... she thought it may be prudent to be prepared to use it in case anything went wrong.

here comes the sun