Perhaps part of Rexanna admired the innocence that seemed to sprout from the mare before her – perhaps even part of her saw a younger naïve version of herself within the golden pale hues of her. And maybe it made her wish that the difficulties and harm that had come to her from such a young age wouldn’t find its way into ruining the façade that Zyanya put forth – whether it was truthful innocence or not. It was almost calming and sad at the same time, the feeling that was bittersweet at the back of her throat, hopeful for better days but still sour and bitter about the past. Maybe the Thief would never change. But she could try. There was always the chance in trying.

And so when a shy smile grew upon Zyanya’s lips, Rexanna’s gentle smile returned to her own pale maw, nodding when she said he wasn’t any trouble. The Thief was glad the mare had thought so, but it still wouldn’t relieve the snarky colt from whatever punishment she decided for him – perhaps living under the command of their father would be enough to put him on the right track. But it was so far away and Rexanna wasn’t sure she was ready for that kind of agreement. Time could change all things, though, and if she hadn’t believed in that so far in her life, she wasn’t sure what else she could believe. Yet, the mare before her seemed to grow almost cautious as she picked her next words carefully. Rexanna’s brows furrowed lightly when she asked her question and Rexanna did her best to not laugh. “Oh gods no. I mean, don’t get me wrong. Deimos is kind and quiet when you get to know him. He’d do anything to protect his family and his herd. But he’s a bit terrifying too, I couldn’t imagine doing that with him.” She grinned to the mare, hoping that perhaps her explanation would make her feel better of asking such a straight forward question. “No, their father is Tembovu, the King of the World’s Edge. It’s the herdland that’s located to the Southwest of here. There’s one that lies almost directly below us as well called the Hidden Falls, and then there’s the Dragon’s Throat that lies the furthest South of Helovia.” She informed the mare, keeping her regality and her stance as she explained the lands and locations if the mare were to think about exploring. The smile landed on her lips easily as she looked upon Zyanya with her next question, yet began to falter when the mare’s gaze drifted across the lake’s waters.

“I come from a land to the east,” Rexanna listened, her pale tipped ears cupping forward as she took in the information. “It sounds beautiful.” She murmured, before Zyanya turned her head back to the Thief and spoke of war. Nodding slowly, the Thief frowned and let her gaze catch the gentle hues of the other mare’s. “Oh, that’s unfortunate. A land of war is never something that’s easy.” She added in, shifting her weight slightly and flicking her dual toned tail against her hocks. “I also came from a land of war. It hadn’t always been that way, though. The place I was from was ruled by four kingdoms. The place I was born into was very similar to the Basin – a land of mountains with beautiful rivers that flowed from the melting mountaintops. But I was born as a slave to the King – not knowing that I was actually the Queen’s daughter to an affair. He treated me pretty poorly because of it, but when the war came to our doorstep, he offered me to the enemy Kingdom as a peace treaty to become mates with the Kingdom’s Prince.” She noted, her eyes almost glazing over with a far away look. “It didn’t end well either. I ended up running away from my own war torn lands while the Prince sought after me and finally made it here to Helovia.” Her voice was soft, but she hoped that perhaps the mare would feel a bit of solace and comfort in knowing that she wasn’t alone.

"Talk."

— got to sleep,

spent the whole night running.