As the sable and scarlet mare awoke and began to rise, her lips beginning to form words that would either damn or forgive him, a rush of movement was seen from the edge of the sorrel lad's vision. Suddenly, a similar-seeming mare was hovering over the other in a protective manner, hurriedly snapping words at him. We do not need your help. He took another step back, taken off guard once more by the aggression shown by the newcomer.

Confusion, surprise, and irritation comingled at the back of the gent's mind and he had to resist the urge to allow his poor mood to show; he was getting tired of being repeatedly berated by others, especially mares, when he offered help. It seemed that all of his kind intentions lately were being perceived as skewed and scoundrel-esque. In fact, earlier that day, the ruby stained lad had encountered a pair of mares some distance from here that had taken his greeting as sexual interest.

He snorted at the thought, his mind had never wandered toward sensuality and intercourse, not even when he had been steeped in love for Mitzi. Besides, he thought tiredly, No one will ever consume me the way she did. Who do these women think they are, comparing themselves to her? As his poor mood grew and threatened to be made apparent, the tension was broken by the arrival of a goliath stallion. A frown began to tug at the corners of Rift's mouth at the approach of the brute, it would be his luck that the unicorn would share the less-than-savory disposition of his current company.

Rift shifted his weight, about to dismiss himself from what he assumed was going to be a rather sour communion, when the stranger's words left him pleasantly surprised. Invisible brows shooting up at the night-stained stallion's gentle defense of his actions, Rift found himself moving closer to the cheery protection that he offered. Alune, if he had heard correctly, seemed to be one of the more enjoyable equines he had met within the Threshold, though from the looks of it, the ivory-horned gentleman already had a home within the World's Edge. Again, the Edge came up, reminding Rift of his beloved Naerys and causing his grin to widen as he wondered how she was faring near the misty seas.

His fond musings were cut short, however, by the arrival of a snowy filly adorned with horns and wings, her doe-like frame similar to Rift's own. He nodded politely in her direction, one ear swiveling toward her whilst the other remained pivoted in the unnamed mares' direction. The chestnut stallion found his lips pursing in shock at the dainty child's bold speech while a sort of pride blossomed within the back of his mind; when he had turned to dust, he would be glad to have children of this sort inheriting the earth.

Ears swiveling back toward the mare he had bumped into, Rift learned that her name was Dagger and that her rigid companion was called Cloak. Cocking his head to the side in a birdlike fashion, the winged stallion nodded to each of the mares in turn before breaking the short silence.

"Well met, Dagger and Cloak. I apologize for any sort of misinterpretation that my actions caused, I hope that they didn't cause you any sort of dismay." Turning his scarlet eyes to the pair from World's Edge, Rift addressed them as well, "Hello, I am not sure if you were within earshot, but I am Rift. It is nice to meet more equines of the Edge. I have a friend there, her name is Naerys, do you know of her?"

He punctuated his sentence with the gentle ruffling of his wings before taking a steadying breath and turning his gaze back to that of the bonded mares before him, "I also extend an invitation on behalf of the Dragon's Throat, we are a land to the South and offer to you a home." Casting a glance toward Alune, Rift gave a wry chuckle, feeling comfortable enough within the azure stallion's presence to be honest, cheekiness coloring his voice.

"But I doubt you ladies would want to accompany me when you have this charming gent to lead the way."