O N N I
back then our bones wouldn't break, always fighting to stay awake.

"Mauja?" the word gets whispered onto the air, gently and without malice. It is not the bitch of the Dragon's Throat that has been alerted by the shimmering visage of a horse standing among the red sand. The soft eyes of her daughter, instead, come to rest on his partially translucent body.

Onni had been returned home from the Meadow, a gathering of herbs not native to the desert rested easily between her wings. Lyhty, the small little song bird, stood atop the pile like a guard, a very small yet serious guard. His small black beak was hoisted toward the sky proudly, only stopping when the mighty thought of curiosity hit his brain, a message sent unknowingly by the painted mare he rode upon. With a few hops, Lyhty comes to rest upon Onni's crown, chirping slightly while peering ahead with tiny, beaded red eyes. His exploration of the desert scene is cut short as Onni steps her pace up to a canter. A rush of air pushes Lyhty back from her crown with a surprised squawk, landing him back on the herbs nestled between her wings. A cheerful laugh from his soulmate follows him.

Whoever the mystery guest was, Lyhty was quite certain he had heard Mauja. The little bird did not remember the Ice King, and is hit with a sudden flit of jealousy as he realizes that someone has met the gentle healer before him. Onni had an entire life before bonding to Lyhty, but the songbird often forgot this to be the case. This Mauja was a relic from her life before the bond, and while he was slightly excited, he was more annoyed than anything else.

The mare was so focused on the glimmering white figure that she hardly noticed the shadows beginning to flow behind her line of vision. The closer she got, the more noticeable the shadows became, and Lyhty peeps up in surprise. Onni turns her face to look back and catches the moment, halting suddenly. Twisting her head about, the healer sees the moving of shadows in her peripheral, but cannot seem to catch them. "What in the world?" she asks, slowing her movement to a walk and holding her muscles ready to sprint out of the way of ghouls that linger here. Perhaps after this adventure, Onni would need to visit the God of the Sun once more to ask if something haunted the Dragon's Throat.

Stepping close toward Mauja, approaching from behind being sure that her presence is not one of stealth. She had no need to frighten the Ice King, though the thought of his passive face curling into an expression of fear would be humorous. "Mauja the Frostheart," she says respectfully, walking easily toward his side and looking up toward his face with a soft smile. "If my mother finds you so far in our borders unaccompanied, she might behead you. Allow me to travel with you during your stay." A laugh, golden like a bell, rings out from her lips. The shadows at the edge of her vision pose no immediate threat. The more alarming reality is that Onni can partially see the blue of the sky behind Mauja's face. Was he a ghost? Had he died?

That thought was sorrowful, causing the healer's tail to whip behind her legs and Lyhty's chirp to ring slightly from his throat in a soothing manner. "What happened to you, Mauja?"