A brisk wind tousled the young brute’s ombré locks as the silver mare spoke. As Ele tried to process what she said, his state of perplexity set in once again, and he cocked his head slightly to one side. ‘A home? What on earth—how did she know I was here? Was she expecting me?’ Strange, indeed, it seemed. Different conclusions rushed through the bewildered stag’s head, and he had to shake it to rid the distorting thoughts, and started over.

“Helovia?” The sable stallion echoed in confusion. Hidden Falls? Aurora Basin? Had he ever heard of such places? How many knew about it? How many actually lived here—fifty . . . a thousand? Ele was so focused on dissecting the puzzle laid before him, he hardly heard the next words that left the dame’s mouth.

The bister-pelted colt struggled to recompose himself, as the second fae cut it once more. She explained things a bit clearer than the first, describing a rather large and diverse population. She outlined her homeland, and emphasized one particular “Lady”. Was this creature a ruler of the black mare’s land? She must be. As Solanine’s expression softened, the stag felt a wave of relief. She was rather forward, and a strong personality certainly shone through the onyx orbs of her eyes, but as she spoke of this mysterious Lady, a gentleness crept into her voice and swept over her face.

After she finished, Ele cleared his throat, now better able to keep his thoughts organized. “Well, thank you both for welcoming me. My name is Elecampane,” he said with a polite dip of his head. The colt understood now that they were here to recruit him, and meant no hostility towards him in any way. It made perfect sense: this forest must’ve been where the outsiders funneled in from the east, and therefor a perfect place to collect wanderers and build up a herd. The adolescent weighed his options as best he could, but there was simply not enough information for him to make a decision right away!

His brown gaze shifted from one fem to the other, before he posed a question, “Please tell me a bit more about each of your homes—that is, if you don’t mind. I just want to know what I might be walking into. How are they run? What sort of equine reside there? And where are they located?” Ele knew very well that he was pressing the two. However, he was seriously considering the notion of becoming a part of this peculiar world. After all, what did he have to lose? He had spent the past year wandering aimlessly; he felt he had been alone long enough.