Själ

The morning sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon when the girl woke. She had sheltered for the night under a weeping willow tree near the coast, having elected to find some manner of cover to protect her. If nothing else, her mother had taught the girl paranoia before her disappearance and eventual death, and after learning of the DarkEmpress's downfall, her daughter was all the more inclined to caution. Although the willow offered little true protection, she had taken the gamble that a small, dark form would not be noticed among the long, swaying branches. As it turned out, she had been correct.

Now it was time to move on. She had been surprised at how few others she had come across as she had traveled the coast of Helovia. She hadn't had the slightest clue where to begin after leaving the Threshold (and her sister, though she shoved the memory aside), and after going north and meeting the ocean, she had elected to just follow it. She hadn't wanted to risk getting lost and going in circles, and this had seemed the perfect solution. Still, she had expected, from her mother's ramblings, to find more life. There were plenty of reptiles sunning themselves on the rocks, plenty of birds flitting overhead... but where were the equine forms? Other than that strange, half-winged child in the Fields, she had seen no one.

The filly pressed on, following the waves as the coast turned north. It began to get coolor, even in the warmth of Tallsun, and by midday, she had unknowingly crossed into the area known as the Frostbreath Steppe, though it was lacking the snows that were so indicative of the region. As she moved further north, she would begin to see remnants of frost in the shadows of the elaborate, shimmering rock formations that dotted the scrubby landscape - but for now, she noted only the slowly cooling temperatures.

She had never encountered the blistering heat of Helovia's more southern lands. She had been born at the beginning of winter, and despite having spent her early months outside of Helovia, she had grown strong in the frigid temperatures that she had begun her life in. Her pelt had been covered in sweat and flies since her entry into her mother's empire; the gentle, cool breeze coaxing her north was a blessed relief, though it did not particularly help the flies. Her tail, only half-grown, could only do so much for her, nor the dainty trot that propelled her forward discourage the pests.

Still she pressed onward, determined to find someone that could give her direction.

Talk.

Själ

The little princess flicked her tail irritably as she trotted ever northward, growing more annoyed with each new fly. It seemed that just as she managed to deflect one horde from her pelt, another would attack an unprotected section of skin. It was a never-ending battle and, quite frankly, it was getting on her very. Last. Nerve. It seemed that Helovia was just one huge stretch of heat and humidity and bugs, and she was entirely disappointed by the discovery.

She was beginning to see why Mother had left.

She still did not understand why Mother had returned.

Returned to be murdered.

The thought sent a shudder of fear and rage up her spine, and she tossed her head violently to disrupt it. Her horns glinted in the sunlight, refracting little rainbows across the ground every now and then. She used to watch the way the light moved as she craned her neck - but she had grown up since then, and she hadn't the time to spare just now. Even if it was sort of pretty.

A girl's voice interrupted the child as she picked her way through the sparse scrub, skirting the patches of snow that dotted the landscape. Her amber gaze snapped up, ears pricking toward the noise, surprised and delighted to find that finally someone had deigned to appear. It was about damn time, considering who she was and who her Mother had been. Weren't they supposed to recognize her? To line up to help her or at least offer a kind word? Remembering her encounter with Snö earlier, she scowled to herself. Perhaps kind words would be hard to find in these lands.

But no matter - it wasn't as though she had come here to find love and adoration. She had come for her birthright, and perhaps this filly could help her find it.

"Does it?" she asked skeptically. "I was beginning to think that nothing would." She paused in her movement, as though to see if the filly would stop to chat. The princess was surprised to find that they looked oddly alike. It was odd to think that she looked more like this stranger that her own flesh and blood (again, Snö's form crept out from the shadows of her memory), but alas - the world worked in strange ways.

Talk.

@[Glacia]