They had wandered south of the Edge, him and Vesper, taking a small trip to see if they could find Virga. Apparently his twins had a habit of going off on adventures and though that didn’t really make Mesec feel any better about not knowing where the little colt had gone, it was mildly comforting to know that it wasn’t inherently strange. He remembered wandering away from his father as a colt too - the world of Helovia offering no shortage of things to visit and see.

In the chill of the night, he had found a protected spot where they could lie for a time - his silver-lined wing draped over his daughter to keep her warm. He hadn’t known his eyes had drifted close until they opened to see the bright blue sprite before his nose. Silver eyes widened in surprise then, all traces of sleep vanishing in a moment. “Look, Vesper.” He quietly nudged her with his muzzle to wake her so she might see this wisp of magic - and then it disappeared.

But the chime of it did not and Mesec understood that all he had to do was follow it to see where it might lead.

He was already standing carefully and taking a tentative step to follow when he spoke again. “Do you think we should follow it?” He asked his daughter with a smile - even though it didn’t feel right that Virga wasn’t there with them. Surely his son would like to see this just as much as she did.

But for now there was nothing he could do about that and though he felt wary about the lights and where they might lead them, he also felt braver because of the presence of the small silver and black filly. Maybe it would be okay if they went together.

Frostfall felt familiar to me a in a way that none of the other seasons did.  I had no way of knowing that I’d been born in the endless winter - the winter that had refused to release its hold on Helovia for nearly twice as long as was was considered normal.  My childhood had been spent amongst snow drifts and leaves encased in ice.  The winter seemed to bleed into Birdsong too, especially north in the Basin.  It wasn’t really until the full heat of Tallsun that I experienced the true changing of the seasons and experienced just how much the world could change. And venturing south with Papa and Virga? Well, it was overwhelming to say the very least, but in the best way. There was just so much to see.  So when Frostfall came again, and snow fell again across Helovia, it was a profound comfort.

I found I quite enjoyed exploring with even though now that Virga and I had had our first birthday, we were old enough to spend more time on our own now.  I know it made Papa nervous when we went too far - and whenever Virga was too far it made me nervous too - so I was eager to leave the Edge earlier this morning. But after a day of wandering, and no sign of her brother, Papa and I found a warm spot to sleep for the night - under the stars just like we had before we’d made the Edge home.  

Papa’s voice is what pulled me from sleep from where I lay curled up against his side - tucked away under his large wing.  I blinked furiously in an effort to clear the sleep from my eyes and the fog from my mind as I struggled to understand what it was that Papa was even saying.  ”Mmm? Follow what?” I asked, confused, looking up at Papa with still groggy, silver eyes. I wasn’t sure what Papa had seen, but there was certainly nothing there now.  Papa seemed to be intent to follow something and it was all I could do to keep from pouting when the warmth from his wing was gone and he had found his feet. 

But then I could hear it and in the span of a single heartbeat, I, too, was scrambling to find my feet. “Oh! Oh! Yes! I think we should,” I managed, in a still groggy voice that was tinged with excitement, peeking around Papa just in time to see one of the lights flicker and disappear. I pressed myself against his side, both excited and apprehensive about the mysterious lights, before peering up at him - waiting to see what he did before moving any closer to what I knew had to be magic.

Vesper’s presence and excitement grounded Mesec - gave him a reason not to chase after the alluring siren’s song of the light, though he wasn’t entirely sure he would have been able to turn away completely. He watched as they danced around Vesper - he would be surprised if he found anyone or anything that wasn’t enchanted with his daughter - but his hooves started to move and he followed the larger light, the one that was calling to him. He motioned for the filly to come along, if she wasn’t moving already, and for a moment he allowed a light curiosity to take over the wariness.

Until it brought them to the water.

He stopped at the edge, confused, while a blue orb floated before him. The whisper of a voice that was only just familiar speaking to him, asking him if he trusted them. His answer wasn’t a sure, definite ‘yes’ but it was a yes all the same, a slight nod that he made while he glanced back at Vesper - making sure that she was alright before finding more confidence in his response.

When the light moved across the water and beckoned him, Mesec felt hesitation flare up within him - the water was unfrozen but likely freezing and he did not relish the idea of wading into it, nor of leaving Vesper behind. If this was his mother trying to give him a message, couldn’t she find another way?

He was going to follow, but not straight away. Mesec turned his head from the water and looked to Vesper. “Stay here, sweetie. I’ll be right back.” He made sure that there was no hesitation in his voice - no uncertainty that the bright filly would be able to pick up on. Even though he wasn’t entirely sure, he needed her to believe it and he needed to believe it too.

After all, he did not have the luxury of drowning tonight - that would be unacceptable. Mesec would not leave his children and, if nothing else, that stubborn determination might save him.

Lucius, returned from his hunt, landed on the snow near Vesper - eyeing the sprite that hovered near her - and became a piece of Mesec left behind for her as the demigod waded into the chilly waters. Slowly and cautiously then, he swam to follow the light - his silver eyes fixed upon it.

As soon as Mesec’s hoof was placed on the sparkling, moonlight bridge, he wondered if he had made the right choice. Perhaps it would have been better for him not to leave Vesper, even if he had only left her on the bank of the lake. Would a better father have demanded safe passage for both him and his daughter before giving into the calls and beckons of the mysterious, though so far friendly, lights?

He needed to trust the lights because he needed them to bring him back to her safely. His heart had jumped with the first step - his body jostled with the strange sensation of stepping forward expecting to find no resistance but instead discovering something impossibly strong and beautiful - but with each that followed he became more confident and trusting of the bridge. After all, if it were to fail he knew the lake would be bitterly cold but swimmable. Every few steps, Mesec turned his head to look at his daughter and his companion on the shore. Compared to the luminous spot he was in now, the silver star girl on the shore seemed shadowy and dark but he could still see them. Lucius shifted uncomfortably where he had landed - his piercing silver and violet gaze filled with the doubt and distrust that Mesec kept at bay.

The demigod paused only when the bridge ended, uncertainty flickering into his mind for a moment as he reached forward with his nose to brush softly against the edge of the misty structure to confirm that it had indeed ended. The lights were still around him, shifting and dancing until they spoke, beckoning him to look down. By now, his curiosity was winning out over his fear and he followed the instructions, his silver gaze drifting down past the luminous bridge to find something glowing in the water - a soft green light. At first, it was difficult to make out what was there, but he recognized the shape of the object soon enough, just as the giggling voices asked him what he saw.

An egg.

At once, Mesec thought of two things. He thought of Virga, his son, the only one of their trio family without a companion and for the hundredth time that day alone he wished his son was here. And then Mesec thought of Lucius, when the large zephyr was no more than a black and silver egg himself. ‘Will you take it? Or will it take you?’ The voices asked and Mesec smiled faintly to himself - thinking that if the egg held what he thought it did, the answer was a combination of both. If he took it, it would take him too.

Lucius felt Mesec’s hesitation, a wall of it built with a dozen questions. The egg could hold anything, really - they had both seen enough of Helovia’s magic to know that - but if it was a companion? What would that mean for their bond? And then, practically, Mesec feared reaching into the water to pick up the egg with his mouth in case he damaged it or dropped it. In response, Lucius took off from his post with Vesper and glided up to catch up with Mesec before lowering himself as slowly and carefully as he could - talons outstretched to grasp at the egg settled in the water.

There was only one way to find out what was going to happen, the zephyr reasoned, and hesitating was not it.