Eventide is softly casting o'er the earth a magic spell,

And a love-song, everlasting, on the night wind seems to swell.

"I can fly" she whispered, smiling as her wings beat the air into submission. "I can fly" she said, louder now. Pointing the nose towards the ground she tucked the wings sharply against the sides and dived, the wind a scream and howl in the ears as the earth came rising up to meet her.

"I CAN FLY!"

It was a feral screech, a battle cry, a taunt and a challenge. I dare you to object. I challenge you to contradict me. Tell me I can't and I will prove you wrong!

The world had shrunk from the moment she realized that the wind would carry her, as it had carried her mother before her, and her mother before that. For every restless wing-beat the secrets of Helovia were laid bare before her, a magical world filled with wonder; and it was all hers for the taking. It was enough to give you chills, enough to make a kind-hearted girl forget what it meant to care for others. Enough to make her selfish, greedy, discontent. The world was vast and beautiful but she craved more, more more, every valley, mountain and river, every cloud in the sky and each tree in the forests; she wanted them, needed them. Not to own, to rule or command. No, she was greedier than that, because she desired to know them, understand them, experience it all like she experienced the pounding heart and burning muscles of her own body.

To savor, to cherish. To love and to hold.  

Movement below stole her attention away and with a slight adjustment of the wings, not quite elegant yet but effective none the less, Erthë slowed down and leaned into a wide circle as she looked about to see where she were. Time didn't matter much when she flew, but it had played a trick on her today because already several hours had passed and the forest she had left was not the same as the one she drifted above now. Without realizing it she had covered a distance of several hundred kilometers in one go... no wonder her shoulders burned and ached like they were.

As she lowered herself down towards the yellow-tinted ocean below, she scoured the ground for a sign of what had distracted her. Everything looked different from above, but she still thought herself able to recognize the shape of a horse below the canopy. A smile touched upon the soft lips; ah. So this was where she had ended up. The Threshold. Which meant that the wanderer below could be a traveler, newly arrived.

There were several options to choose from in a situation like this, but for her there was only one real way to go. Picking out a clearing directly in the path of the walker, the filly lowered herself carefully down, nervously flapping the wings as she inched down through the branches of the trees. Landing wasn't her strongest suit yet, and she had to be careful. While her wings might be strong and agile, her legs were far from it; touching down was always painful, and it made her stagger a bit before she regained balance and came to a stand still.

Breathing deeply the pearly hued fae folded the elegant swan wings to her sides and looked around. The gloom beneath the trees seemed even darker after the brightness of the light above; she blinked, pale orbs studying every shadowy shrub and tree for the target of her interest. When finely chiseled lobes picked up the sound of hoof-beats she picked her way towards the source, slowly and clumsily; an even, otherwise graceful stride disrupted by a heavy limp on the right front leg, apparently painful judging by the grimaces she made every once in a while.

"Hello there!" she called as she neared the stranger, silvery vocals bright and cheerful as she peered through the shadows towards him. "Welcome to Helovia, wanderer. Do you know your way about or can I be of assistance? My name is Erthë of World's Edge, native to these lands."

Her smile was warm and genuine, filled with a bright, naive trust that spoke volumes of her youth and inexperience even though the choice of words might suggest otherwise. She approached him with a directness that suggested she had nothing to hide, and the pause that followed her words was genial and pleasant, inviting as it was hopeful. Erthë did like strangers after all, and it would be a sad day indeed if he didn't want to talk to her.