It had cooled considerably since the colt's arrival to the Foothills. When he had first come, the sun was at his back almost constantly, warming him, giving him a new light in which to view his world in a way. The warmth of his mother's brother was quick to wane, however, when Tallsun was laid to rest and made way for Orangemoon. The season marked his becoming a yearling, but whenever the colt put his mind to it and really thought about it, he couldn't believe how much had happened to him in his young life.

Hatred and loathing had been a constant in his life, but now, he'd been given a second opportunity. He had nothing to fear in the Foothills, for nobody had ridiculed him thus far for the blood he'd been born with. Often times he found himself wondering what sort of mangled mess he would be, had he not shared the blood of the Basin's Time Mender, d'Artagnan. While he did truly respect his father and the pale nurse, Kou, he knew their love for him was not the same as it was for the rest of their children. With a sigh, he would usually push the memories away and focus on meeting the members of his new home.

Today was no exception. The child of darkness ambled across the plains early that morning, just as the sun had begun to peak over the mountains. He was certain that many would not care to be up at such ungodly hours, but there had to be somebody. Idly he thought of the great waterfall that fell in the northern region of the land; would anybody be there to quench their morning thirst? Deciding that it was at least worth a shot, Mesec moved into a lengthy trot and pointed himself towards the landmark.

As he moved closer, Mesec could clearly make out the sounds of the waterfall, a gentle lulling from this distance. Should he find himself alone, he would drink his fill and simply move on until he found himself in the company of another. He felt childish yearning for the presence of those that accepted him, but such a trivial necessity could not be ignored in the colt's mind.

Rounding a crook of trees, Mesec breathed a sigh of relief when his silver gaze found the sight of the pale mare who had offered this land to him in the first place. It was Ophelia, and the mere sight of her caused a great swelling of happiness within his chest. But before he could call out his presence to her, he spied another, smaller figure standing at her side. It was as pale as Ophelia, but with the strangest azure markings upon her back. Curiously, the yearling began to approach, slowing his pace to an almost hesitant walk. The filly was still wet, but standing; how long had Ophelia been with child? He did not recall her barrel being too rounded during their time in the Steppe.

"Ophelia," he spoke up, dropping his head with dark ears flickering forward at the little filly, "What is her name?" At this, a genuine smile slowly pulled at the colt's lips. "She is beautiful."

Mesec did not recognize the ebony and ivory form that came barreling his way next. He knew not that she was Ophelia's beloved twin, her sister, aunt to the youngster that had just been welcomed into the world. He grew somewhat uneasy when her crimson, blood-red eyes landed upon him, but was thankful that she didn't seem to mind his presence and simply looked back to the pale Queen and her newborn heir.

Only when the stranger spoke did he realize the relation between the two, and instantly he recalled her name from his and Ophelia's previous talk. This was her hybrid sister she had spoken so fondly of, and almost immediately he found himself drawn to her. She, like Ophelia, did not look upon him with glaring hatred in her strangely hued eyes. If she ruled alongside Ophelia, then that was good enough for Mesec to trust her.

Not but a few seconds later did another being come crashing in behind her, almost literally. This one was of a dark grullo color, legs striped with the most brilliant bronze color. Mesec nearly turned his head to look back to Ophelia without another thought, but before he could do so, he spied the most curious of features upon the smoky colt. Alas, he bore not only wings at his sides, but a pair of curling horns as well! Mesec's ears snapped forward in attention, and almost subconsciously, he bellowed a soft nicker towards the other yearling.

Of course, the child of darkness knew not that the very colt he was staring at, was also the child of a God. The only thing that mattered in Mesec's mind was that he had found another just like him, and he hoped dearly that they could become friends later on. Had the grullo been picked on like he had? Ridiculed for his unusual appearance? But that couldn't be, certainly not if Ophelia's words spoken in the Steppe had been true. Here in the Foothills, she had promised a safe haven for creatures like him, and it seemed his worries were about to be put to rest yet again.

Mesec's attention was swept away by the wave that was Ophelia's voice, and turning his dark head towards her, he listened. 'My... sister?' He thought idly, looking to the young filly and dropping his head from it's height. Aviya had been the only sister he'd known, and while their relationship had been somewhat of a good one, it was now shattered, just like her horn had been... d'Artagnan had also told him of a younger sister called Nao, but he'd never met her during his time in the Basin, and he was of course oblivious to his newborn brothers.

Ophelia continued, and with each word she spoke, Mesec could feel pride swelling deep within his chest. He knew not what a structured family was like, and had never been given any sort of responsibility, especially one so important as looking after a family. Now, he had been given one to do just that with. While his father was absent and his mother, the Moon, was still very near and dear to him, he was happy to call those gathered family; he would look to Ophelia for guidance as a mother, for his was much too busy to answer his daily questions. He did not know the others at all, but he would look to Ktulu as his aunt, the grullo as his brother, and little Roskuld as his precious sister to love and to cherish.

But before Mesec could open his mouth to utter a single word, he was cut off by the sudden charge of the little filly he now recognized as his little sister. Her actions startled him, nearly sending him backwards in fright, but in the end he merely flinched and braced himself for whatever it was that she was going to do.

And then it came. A ram of her stump-horn into his leg, and that was it. It didn't hurt, and if Mesec could have said so himself, he would say it was cute. Craning his neck to look down upon the newborn, a smile pulled at his dark lips and he watched with amusement as she turned and skipped back to her mother, obviously embarrassed by what she had done. He couldn't wait to spend more time with the filly, but he supposed he should let her get used to her own skin first. Slapping his tail against his hocks, Mesec decided not to comment on the attack and simply looked back to Ophelia, his smile unyielding.

"Of course," he spoke up, "I'll always be here to protect my family!"