|
Night fell dangerously low around them with only a faint trace of orange and purple clinging at the seams of the horizon. Both equine and wolf were in sync with the nightlife beaming and trilling from the dense wood of the Threshold all around. They had spent much of the day circling, playing, and laughing between the trees but had yet to encounter another friendly face. It reminded them too much of their stint in the Wilds but also affirmed their everlasting bond, one that had been tested with their return to Helovia. However, with the shadows creeping just around the bend, Romul’s attention remained fixed ahead. However, Essetia had insisted they wait out the midnight hour before returning to the Falls even if her companion whined and begged otherwise.
He was nervous and tense with anxiety, too many cold and threatening nights behind him to ignore. His thoughts thrummed across the ether of their bond before flowering slowly in Essetia’s conscious causing the mare to stop in order to reign him in. “Calm down, we’ll be fine.” she murmured softly. However, just as she resolved that they would indeed be perfectly safe there in the Threshold, the resounding crackling of underbrush urged the mare to lift her eyes from Romul. She peered out into the growing darkness, hopeful to find either deer or forest dweller maneuvering through the wood. But she found nothing… aside from a blooming curiosity that put the pair to task.
“Stay close Rome,” Essetia commanded of the pale wolf. He responded with a soft snort despite the fact that his need to scout their path weighed heavily in the back of Essetia’s own mind. He had always felt the need to protect and shield the girl from danger. But now that she was capable of protecting them both from harm Essetia had become more watchful.
Another heavy crack! broke through the quiet at their left and both Romul and Essetia paused before trailing it. Up ahead, the moon lit a narrow path leading down toward a shallow ravine. Slowly, Romul approached its lip before beckoning his companion forward; just below, in the hollow dip, stood a greyed figure. Essetia rumbled at the creature before slowly easing her heft down the left side of narrow bank. “She might just answer you someday…” she stated casually while glancing up into the stars. Upon approaching the male, colorless eyes flecked in brown found those foreign pupils gazing longingly at the moon’s wide, pallid face. His lips were parted as though he had sung to her from time to time, though Essetia could only pretend such notions were true.
“I’m Essetia and this is Romul,” she stated while gesturing to the cautious wolf at her side. He had managed to plant himself quietly at her shoulder after easing down the slope at their backs. However, golden eyes did not comfort their new friend and instead warned him from making and false moves toward Essetia.
“Behave,” the mare soothed silently. | |
.svg/2000px-Google_Chrome_icon_(2011).svg.png){kind=icon}
⇒
i am nothing, i do not even have ashes to rub into my eyes
