It tore at his heartstrings, to witness the havoc that was reeking in his home. The wildness and fear in Mauja’s eyes, his wounded comrades and the all-consuming flames; a soft whinny of distress escaped him as the fire tinged him. Luckily, his thick fur could protect him some, so he was only marked by superficial buns, but he was faced with quite a task of trying to keep distance between him and the licking flames. The imp tried to help Korra from where she was reclining, but the embers were already dancing across her hide, so it was only little good his help could do. Hail started to fall and the fire beast drew his last breath, vanishing into thin air. Aurelius sighed, partly in relief and partly in sorrow, for what laid before him was a miserable sight. He checked on Korra to see that she was still responsive, though her glazed sight and trembling body witnessed a state of shock; Hellena was also in a bad shape, but he had no time to go check on her before his attention was brought to the intruders.

His tiny lobes flicked in their direction as he heard speech; who were they, to march in like that, mocking them in their own home? Realizing that there was nothing he could do for his family, that he was not going to help by gawking at them, he trotted over to place himself next to his liege king. Glistening eyes peered at the siblings from behind his thick forelock, his once silver tresses now tinged by ash. Physically, he did not pose a threat to any of the intruders, but his cunning wits and sharp tongue had often proved handy in such situations. Aury looked at each one of them in turn; the big, brooding stallions that flanked the sides of their smaller sister, and the silver-tinted female at the back, who had spoken insultingly towards them seconds earlier. His eyes grew hard as he looked at her; he would’ve loved to see how she would react, should someone set her family and home on fire.

The rain was pouring over him, washing the ash from his hide like gentle kisses, forming a puddle of dirty water under him. The relief on his burns felt heavenly, and he drew a deep breath, listening as Mirage stated the purpose of their visit. Aurelius noticed that the equines hadn’t gone untouched; their behavior made him pity them less. He did not speak; he didn’t have to, for as the mare had spoken, all four of them returned in the direction they had arrived. Odd eyes wandered to Mauja, seeing the exhaustion in the pale stallions face. "We shall prevail," were the only words spoken. That they resonated from the small stallion seemed wondrous, for the tone was nothing like his usual way of speech; dry, stern, frigid. When threatened on his home and fellows, sweet Aurelius turned cold.