The girl slipped deeper into the caves, with nothing but the clatter of her footsteps betraying her presence. The daughter of the summer stars, carved from the night itself, seemed to grow colder as each night passed overhead. She had never been a bubbly girl, no, she was always sharp and coy, a dagger hidden in a closed fist behind a turned back. Certainly she was friendly, but even that was slipping from her fingers the longer she stayed alone and solitary. She was not rude nor brash, but her softness was fading quickly, and she was not fond of who she was becoming. With each heartbreak, each thrown stone, each moment without the warmth of another, either friend or lover, she could feel herself slipping from the girl her mother had begged her to be. Her father had carved her into sharp edged, both in blade and tongue, and it suited her. But what she desired to be was so much more than a soldier meant for nothing but battle.

Ki'irha had been to the caves once before, though her experience was muddled by her disease-ridden state during the opening of the rifts. The rooms she had entered, one comprised of the most brilliant crystals, the other covered in softly sparkling foliage, had reminded her of hazy dreams, and she wanted to see if they were real. She needed a way to remain grounded, and perhaps an ethereal sanctuary was what she needed to remember who she was, and a place she needed to unwind and remove herself from the harshness of life. Even more simply, she had been in the area, as it wasn't long ago that she was granted magic by an unusual bird that had found warmth beside the lava, so it was a perfect time to rediscover the caves in a clearer mind.

As she finally reached her destination, she realized she wasn't alone. Still, it didn't stop her from taking in her surroundings. She stopped in the doorway of the room, and her eyes traveled along the walls. Stars seemed to be settled along the walls, as the flowers twinkled softly as they hung from the trees. The room was humid, but pleasantly so, probably due to the water which flowed freely in the far corner. The beauty struck awe into the young mare, and she wished to wander the room to see every bit it had to offer. But as her eyes landed upon the winged dame, white and pristine spare the soft scarring that marred her body, she considered leaving. Had she happened upon the sanctuary of another? Would she be welcomed to share the space, or would she be rudely interfering with something more important than her wandering.

She took a tentative step forward, for the first time in ages wary. It wasn't often she mingled with those who didn't belong to her herd. More so, she was trying desperately to get over her intolerance of those who were different than her. It was something she was growing ashamed of, but her uncertainties caused the faintest flutter in her heart. She took a deep breath, shaking her nerves away, and took another step forward. She cleared her throat, a soft noise to break the silence as to not surprise the mare. "Hello," she began, voice soft as though she was speaking aloud in a church, "I hope I'm not interrupting. I simply hoped to enjoy the area, though I can leave, if you'd prefer your privacy."

It was a large room, plenty big enough for multiple horses to have their own solitude, but she still wanted to be sure she wasn't unwelcomed. Deep down she hoped she was invited.

Maybe a conversation would be good for. And a potential friend, even better.

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The girl shared a light laugh as their greetings harmonized, and she stepped forward until she stood at a polite distance beside the Transcended. She allowed her own eyes to sweep across the foliage, marveling at the beauty that found it's way into the deepest darkness it could find. It was remarkable, as if the flora knew that this place needed the light it cast. She gave a small nod, though it would have been easily missed as the dual eyes of the Pegasus woman had already strayed. Ki'irha felt no need to repeat her words, though she was in full agreement. She had been wanting company as well, even if it was just sharing silent space with another soul.

Her silver eyes fell back onto the face of Sohalia as she shared a piece of history. The girl couldn't imagine hundreds of bodies crammed into the labarynth of caves. It was certainly unpleasant, and she nearly shuddered at the thought of something so sinister that it forced everyone to live underground. "No," she said in reply, shaking her head. "Truth be told, I don't know much about the history of Helovia. I've only been here a bit longer than a year." It was a bit embarrassing that she had never heard of something as incredible as that. "It must have been awful, whatever it was that happened. Even with everything that came with the Rift, we still didn't need to retreat underground. It's hard to imagine worse that plagues and monstrous deities."

She averted her eyes again, a sparkling flower catching her eye. An ear flicked towards the woman, attentive to any words. She wouldn't mind a history lesson, but she would enjoy further conversation regardless of the topic.

It didn't surprise Ki'irha that she had only seen one devastating event fall upon Helovia. It was apparent that the woman she stood beside held many years of age behind her beauty, and certainly had many tales to tell. Where Ki'irha was young with much life to live, there was nothing to compare to a soul who had lived. The experience, the stories, the sadness, the triumphs, the white mare had certainly done her share of experiencing what life had to offer. Beneath every jaded and blemished surface, there was magnificent luster simply hidden by degrees of age. But that is what gave things character. Each scar had a story, and each break in her heart was stitched back together by something more marvelous than what shattered it in the first place. That may have been a belief sown by a naive mind, but it was a hope that the blue girl held tight. Her own heart wore cracks she was trying to mend, and she was waiting for better times to help her nurse her wounds.

She allowed the silence to settle as she allowed her tail to coil around a rear hoof. She sighed, allowing the soft exhale to expel some of the heaviness that had settled into her heart.

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@Sohalia ~