Storm finally made her final decisions. The fiery lass had been wandering too far, and too long, and finally gave up on the hope of finding the disappeared herd, her lost family. Storm was grief stricken, and to add on top of all of the stress, she was heavily pregnant with an unwanted foal that was never planned for. A pass by? She didn't know, but what her plans intended, was to join this herd, The World's Edge, known for its hospitality, and birth here. She didn't know what she would do after. Leave the foal? But that would be terribly cruel, even for a horse like her. She couldn't do that, she thought now, not after making up her mind.

With her stubborn mind, she resisted to interact with other horses, to grovel for a home, but now the instinct within every equine to have a family, to seek protection was coming out from deep inside, and she knew it was best for her and the foal's health. Storm, having to limit the amount of her flying, wearily landed on the ground, panting from the effort she put in just to lift her up from the ground and fly over past the trees. The lass had to admit the place was a beautiful area, full of forests and rocky coasts. It was a place for her to reside to. Maybe after she birthed, she could receive a fighting rank within the herd to do what she loved to do most. Battle. Battle and fly, she thought to herself. Now exhausted, she lifted up her head and let out a pleading whinny to let her into their home, hoping that someone would come and recruit her.

The mare's beckoning call did not go unheeded, not entirely. Lingering in the shadows of the trees stood a smokey shadow, nearly invisible with the way her monochrome coat was broken up by her natural shading and the dappling of the sunlight and shadow from the overhead tree branches. Dark eyes studied the pegasus that had intruded past the borders, taking in her gravid state and the exhaustion that weighed upon every limb. Nares flared to take in the stranger's scent, a deep inhalation that detected no particular scent pattern. Not of the Edge, nor the Throat, nor the Foothills. And clearly not of the Basin. An outcast.

White-edged ears twitched, listening for the approach of another perhaps more qualified to deal with the encroachment of a stranger. But there was a silence beneath the trees for the moment. Flicking her tail against her haunches, the grulla mare decided she might as well approach. Shifting her weight away from the tree she had leaned her shoulder against, she moved forward with deliberate quietness. Though she had not her Weyrleader's magic to blend with the shadows, she had her own skill and awareness of moving with slow stealth, to go unnoticed as yet another shadow unless she chose otherwise.

Now was such a time, as she stepped from the dappled shadows into the small clearing the pegasus had taken refuge in. "What brings you here?" She inquired, voice cool yet questioning. She felt obliged to offer this stranger the benefit of the doubt, for the moment at least, and restrained herself to calm politeness. But there was no doubt of the assessment she gave this mare. With the vague threat of the Assassin group, one could not be too careful. Even if steps had been made, there could always be an unknown member. Once a military leader, the grulla at times found it hard to step away from old habits.

Not long after the mare beckoned others to emerge out from the trees, another approached her. Storm scanned the lady with her gray blue eyes, taking in her strong appearance, and how her dark coat blended in nearly perfectly with the shadows that the trees cast over them. The gray mare inhaled the strangers scent, trying to pinpoint from where she came from. Instead of taking in the smell of sand, she received the smell of pine trees. An Edge horse, at the most.

As the mare walked closer to her, Storm almost recoiled away from her, thinking that she could attack her in the vulnerable state that she was in, but if she was truly from the Edge, the mare didn't want to have any enemies before she joined, or making any bad impressions. Storm assessed the mare, seeing if she would be a formidable fighter, eyeing her straight in the eye. The mare questioned Storm, and it seemed as if she was suspicious, with the slight edge to her voice. The thought of it almost made Storm smile, or start chuckling.

"I am seeking a home for myself, the World's Edge. I am at a vulnerable point with the foal I'm carrying, and I decided it would be the best interest for the both of us", the mare said, thinking and choosing her words carefully as she spoke. She would reveal no more to the stranger, for she didn't know if she was part of the World's Edge.

Dark eyes were attentive to every little shift and stir in the stranger's body. Quiet approval coiled tight as she observed the wary tension that was so nearly revealed in a movement greater than the tensing of muscles. Amusement fluttered as the other mare recovered insomuch as to gaze boldly back, even smile.

White-edged ears twitched as she listened to the reasons offered for the trespass. "Interesting." The grulla murmured. "Interesting, that you come here seeking refuge for yourself and your child, yet ignore the laws of basic courtesy." A brow arched. "Our border lays at the very edge of the forest, and we do not take kindly to those who ignore them, for whatever reason." Unspoken was the fact that some even then had the right to venture right into the herdland, but those possessing those rights were known and trusted allies.

Quietly, deliberately, the grulla began to pace around the clearing, gaze ever turned inward, watchful. "Interesting that an outcast should carry a child and not seek the sire's protection, or that of his herd." A wry tone, a whisper of knowing. Where was the father? Surely not within the Edge, or this stranger would have mentioned as much. Some fragment of understanding would have been imparted then, had that been the reason.

A low warble vibrated in the air, origin indistinguishable in the density of the trees and the mist. Until a winged figure swept out of the tree cover, small and lean in build. It darted over the pegasus, keen on the grulla who still paced the clearing's circumference. Only when it came to perch upon the grulla's mare haunches was it easy to tell what it was. A dragon colored in both extremes of dark and light tones of blue, expansive wings flipping closed as it balanced expertly on the mare's swaying back. Jade eyes turned inquisitively toward the gravid mare as the dragon settled down to lie draped across his bonded's haunches.

A warm glance was spared toward the lithe draconic form that sprawled over her back, before those dark eyes returned to the pegasus. "What is your name?" She stopped as her circling brought her back before the stranger. "Do you have any previous alliances to groups within Helovia?"

The grulla seemed to be assessing Storm in every way, staring at her with almost an irritated look. The gray mare stared back, not defiantly, but with a slightly annoyed look. It wasn't like she knew the land, she just wanted the best for her foal, and the other mare was watching her every move. "I'm sorry M'am", Storm said trying to control her temper, making her voice smooth and kind, instead of tinged with the familiar sound of annoyance, for she wanted to join this herd. "I also want to inhabit this herd, but I don't know any borders", Storm said informing her so she wouldn't get any ideas that she was just going to use them.

The next questions that the mare asked started getting a little bit intrusive, but Storm mentally sighed and went to reply to her questions. "He had no herd, and he left me dumped on the road", Storm inquired, telling her half of the story. The gray mare barely remembered how it all happened, like a nightstand. Heated up and embarrassed she looked down ashamed of how she could let herself go like that. Out of the blue, a dragon with a shrill cry landed on the Grulla. Storm, with wondered widened her eyes and stared almost curiously at the dragon. A dragon? Wonder struck, she almost didn't hear another question shot at her.

"My name is BreezeStorm, but I am referred to Storm, M'am", she said. "The last alliance I have had was with a herd extremely far away from here, and I have had no alliances with Helovia", she spoke awaiting what the mare would say.

Patience wore thin, then gave way as the impertinent pegasus proceeded to defend her actions. The grulla mare's tail lashed harshy against her haunches and her ears swept back, voice growing cool. "You missed the very clear scent markers that our protectors reinforce multiple times every day? Even someone such as you should have picked that up, since our protectors patrol the treetops as well as the ground." Her words were reinforced by the dragon on her back who hissed and flared his wings, a trickle of smoke escaping his jaws with the suggestion of something much more damaging lying in wait.

"You have no invitation from any of my herdmates, or you would have known to wait at the borders or have had an escort." Aggressively she stepped forward, the ground at her feet becoming obscured by a thickness in the air that had nothing to do with the permeating mist of the herdland. "You claim to have previous experience with herdlife, Storm. Would your past herdmates have accepted just anyone who barged right in and demanded citizenship without observing the most common courtesies?"

She snorted softly in disdain. "You may have heard that our Weyrleader accepts those who venture here, but that is not entirely true. Now I would suggest that you leave until you learn to respect borders. We cannot afford to have one who ignores them so blatantly being associated with the herd, when that disregard can get the entire herd in trouble with another herd that isn't as inclined to forgive you long enough to let you leave."

Aaron & Alanna</style> In Nomine Patris Et Filii Et Spiritus Sancti</style> You would be wise to learn not only our boarders, but the boarders of all herd. None take it to lightly to any outcast trespassing without an escort. The deeper male voice of the glazier came from the trees at first, but he soon stepped out into the clear to stand near Smoke. Alanna joined him shortly after. The duo had been out doing just what Smoke had spoken of, marking the boarders. The ivory and garnet hellhound looked up to yip a greeting to the blue dragon, before turning her icy blue gaze to the stranger. If I were you, heavy with child. I would think it unwise to cross the boarders of any herdland you do not belong to. As Smoke said, we may just be the politest you will meet on the subject. I've known others to attack any stranger on sight. Granted, it mainly was those who were racist and did not want another race on their turf... But there was no need to tell this mare.. Storm, that. He had of course noted upon arrival that there was a mist here that did not seem natural to the Edge. Dark brown eyes figured it to be some sort of magic Smoke held... As they all waited for the outcast to answer, his thoughts wandered to Smoke's daughter Kimber. How much she was like her mother, but how different she was as well. Quickly he pushed all thoughts of Kimber away, not wanting to let on to Zaffre or Smoke his emotions towards her middle child. Alanna ignored him this time, focusing on the intruder. talktallk

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"I am truly sorry", Storm said, bowing her head, a sign of total submission. It was something that the gray mare dreaded doing, but she was almost entirely certain that she wanted to join the World's Edge, for the best interests of her and her coming foal. "I meant no disrespect at all M'am. I honestly want to bring the best to this herd, and I will not foolishly do this again if I were to become a part of it", she said, still in a bowing position, eyes half shut. "My herd mates would have certainly not appreciated it, but they wouldn't turn down someone in need", she spoke, choosing her worlds carefully, keeping a calmed and respectful tone. Remember, this is not your territory.

The dragon on top of the mare's back seemed to be fuming with anger, and hissing spittle. Storm straightened back up, hearing another voice approach. A stallion and his hellhound approached, looking her in the eye. "With all respect Sir, I am sorry, and I knew it was stupid of me to ignore the markers, but...I am in desperate need, and if you were to let me join, I would provide your herd with my loyalty, and my fighting skills", she spoke, meaning each word. It was about time she found a permanent home, and it was better not to blow it stupidly now with any curt words.

The thickness in the air around the grulla's hooves darkened, a roiling mass of what was undeniably smoke. The young painted stud would understand the significance of the appearance of the substance, but the subtle meaning would be lost on the gray pegasus. It grew deeper, rising in the air between the dragon-bonded mare and the foal-heavy one. "Words are merely words until actions prove them otherwise, and your actions have only shown you to be hasty and ignorant. Go, Storm. I will not ask again."

In the wake of her words the smoke was pushed forward, wreathing the pegasus and obscuring the Edgers from sight. "But you have a point, so I will offer you advice. Be wary of unicorns, for we have knowledge of some who would treat you ill. And be cautious of a dunskin stallion with a burnt face, he too will act first and speak second. When you have learned manners and caution, life will treat you better."

At that last the grulla mare turned and walked away into the trees. It was her intent to be out of sight when the smoke cleared, and to watch the gray pegasus' departure.

Aaron & Alanna</style> In Nomine Patris Et Filii Et Spiritus Sancti</style> "With all respect Sir, I am sorry, and I knew it was stupid of me to ignore the markers, but...I am in desperate need, and if you were to let me join, I would provide your herd with my loyalty, and my fighting skills" Aaron merely closed his eyes in frustration. What part of 'get out' was this mare not getting? Was the hormones making her so dense that she did not understand she screwed up and was not going to be allowed to join this day? Clearly she was not understanding the decision was made the moment she crossed the boundary lines into World's Edge. She was lucky it had been Smoke and he that found her.... As other members of the herd would of chased her out at once. The mist Aaron soon knew was smoke continued to thicken around Smoke's hooves. We have all the protectors we need, not to mention you are unproven to us in battle. He listened as Smoke spoke again, telling her to leave. Suddenly the smoke near the ground moved, almost seeming to cover the pegasus. Alanna growled at the mention of the dunskin, as in Aaron's mind Ricochet's image had flashed. He had threatened his mother and Azale when Azale was just a babe... He said nothing, only turning as the Wild Rose did to leave. Alanna on the other hand lunged forward teeth bared and growling, snapping close to the pegasus's hooves. It was time she got the point to leave. The painted steed moved off out of sight, but ready to return should the unwelcome pegasus not get out. talktallk

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