"You are surprising," he replied to her dry comment. "I do not doubt that you could achieve what you set your mind to."

Sooty lips twisted in a halfhearted smile, but did not part to reply. An expression of bitter irony ghosted across her face as she tucked the wings closer to herself, hugging the dwindled sides as though to suppress a shudder. There was much Shadow was capable of, but it seemed that the things she wanted most never came to be. Two and some years ago she would have given her soul to be rid of the life spiring within her womb, to be free and strong and alone without having to bother with anyone else. Bonds only caused injury in the long run, and while she appreciated her friends and superiors in the herd she had been keeping them at an arms length. Never revealing too much, never letting them mean anything more than casual company to herself.

Then time and events beyond her control had forced a foal upon her, only to rip it from her side the moment she actually started to care about him. Plauge and death had torn them apart, and it had taken more time still to recover and bring herself back to this land. And for what? The mare was a shadow of herself and knew it, she was so starved and weak that it was an effort to keep up with her partner even after he slowed down. Her son was nowhere to be seen, she had yet to return to the Throat and see what had become of her once home, and for all she knew it wouldn't even be there after Father Earth had completed this... cleansing, or whatever he'd called it.

No, she was a far cry from the strong, determined soul she had been, wrecked by doubts and guilt and the weakness of heart some romantics would call love. But the winged mare didn't correct the stallions statement, opting to simply remain silent in the hope that her shortcomings wouldn't be too obvious... After all, who would be foolish enough to expose the innermost workings of their souls to a complete stranger, even one she had chosen herself to work together with for now?

As she mulled through her own thoughts the stallion continued speaking, tasting her name on own tongue and eventually offering his own name. It was foreign sounding to her, whispering of lands far away and cultures much different from the vagabonding lifestyle she had, and continued to, live. His insistence on referring to her as though she was some fragile flower in need of protection was rewarded with a distinct roll of the gem-colored eyes, and this time Shadow made no effort to hide her exasperation.

"Whatever makes you happy, Bolverik" she muttered, words grouchy yet the tone bubbling with a reluctant, thoroughly suppressed laughter that surprised even the small mare.

The journey back to the Meadow was uneventful, but the pegasus sighed quietly to herself when they were given another task, again sent out across Helovia to collect water. She never said anything, but she was growing somewhat worried about whether or not she would be able to keep up much longer. Unable to sustain flight for more than a few minutes at a time - her wings could barely hold her in the air, let alone battle any winds; even the gentle summer breezes felt like hurricanes right now - she was forced to join Bolverik on foot, something that only put more strain on tired, withered muscles. She spoke little as they went, occupied with placing one foot in front of the other and with nipping after strands of grass as she passed. Hunger was gnawing within her at a constant basis these days, ravenous as though a black hole had opened up within her belly and was devouring everything she swallowed.

When they came across other pairs equipped with buckets, also heading towards the western sea, Shadow nodded at them in quiet greeting, not even half as grand and commanding as her partner. Yet for all that she was small and scruffy there was something calculating in the way she regarded the strangers, as though the startling violet eyes could see everything about them, missing nothing and forgetting even less. A wraith she had always been, thriving in the shadow of the dazzling lights cast by others, and wasn't Bolverik the perfect bonfire to lurk beside? He sure was handsome at least, the kind of good looking stallion that would make heads turn, mares sigh wistfully and stallions grind their teeth in a sulky dislike they themselves failed to recognize as jealousy. Personally Shadow found his spotless appearance and grand demeanor amusing (at least whenever it stopped annoying her) and she rather enjoyed the role as the startling contrast.

"Best avoid the saltwater" she commented as they made to fill the buckets, retrieving her gaze after its startled jump towards her partner as he referred to her as a friend. "Drinking it does strange things to your brain." She knew from experience. Somewhere along her journey across this very ocean she had grown tired of her sore throat and parched lips and sipped on the salty liquid that came in such impressive quantity. Yet not long after she had been forced to land on a small strip of land in the middle of the sea, ravaged by nausea an hallucinations as her already weakened body struggled to process the copious amounts of salt.

The memory made her shudder. Shadow turned her back on the sun-kissed, clucking waves and reached up to collect the bucket from Bolverik, her ebony nose velvet soft and warm where it reached for the handle.



Shadow and @[Bolverik]! :3