The ocean mare blinks furiously, her vision becoming blurred by the tears that well on her eyelids and spill down her cheeks. Smoke hangs heavily all around her, clogging the air and tightening her throat until she coughs, slender body trembling as it tries to dispel the thick black vapor from her lungs. Anxiously, she casts her eyes about, trying not to give in completely to the terror that scratches at her with cold, tight claws. Tiamat knows that she mustn’t—she can’t—lose herself now, not in the wake of a forest fire.

Lowering her head to where the smoke isn’t so dense, the young unicorn dares to glance behind her, from where she had run. There is not much that she can hear above the wild hammering of her heart in her ears, but through the thick haze of soot, the faint glow of orange is unmistakable. The flames—they will not stop, they will not hesitate, and they will not grant mercy. Within her chest, Tiamat feels her heart twisting painfully. She mourns the loss of the trees and the underbrush, the loss of life, seeing them as she does the woodland animals. Alive.

“Stop!” She whimpers, knowing that her request is futile against the blazing inferno, but still her soul cries with such fervor that she cannot contain it. “Please, stop!” The mare’s voice is hoarse, and her body shudders in another round of coughing, but still the pleading passion in her eyes does not fade. The plants and the earth—they are her family. Why must they suffer this terrible doom?

Closing her eyes through the tears and curling her head in towards her chest, the ocean mare chokes a sob before she whips herself around to face the steadily approaching fire. Perhaps it is in this way that some might see selflessness as a crutch, when she puts the plant life above herself, and cries for their salvation rather than runs for her own. But not this day—not when a warmth suddenly flowers in her heart, blooming to ignite her entire soul with a glow of rapture and compassion. A vibrant combustion that is enough to rival the tangible flames that lick ever closer.

And from her soul it extends, shooting forth with a brilliancy that manifests in a spray of glittering droplets. “What—?!” Tiamat gasps, taken back by the unexpected burst of water. Had—had she made that happen? For a moment she is distracted, stepping back and glancing around at the smoky trees, her heart racing against her ribcage. A shadow of a smile dares to ghost across her lips before she returns her focus on the flames, her heart crying with every branch, with every leaf that is burned.

This selfless fervor sparks the glow within her again, and she can feel her heartrate elevating as she tries to grasp it, control it. Suddenly a bubble gathers, trembling and floating before bursting forward, sizzling against the hot ground. Despite her distress, Tiamat smiles tenderly, closing her eyes as tears of gratitude mix with those of pain. “Thank you,” she cries, sure that the earth and heavens have blessed her this day, never leaving her without hope. This gift—a piece of her father—is a part of her, always.

notes; I really didn't want it to die, and yay! Tia discovered her magic :DD