Ophelia watched the wary stallion when Tinek began his approach once more. She had to admit that the dragon was much like herself in more ways than one. Both of them suffered from an insatiable curiosity and neither gave up easily when burned. She wondered if her mind had imprinted on his own in that way or if he would have grown independently to be such a curious creature? With those thoughts brought a certain guilt that she knew was unfounded. Ophelia had been given the egg by her sister, and she had cared for Tinek very carefully. However, their mental bond had disrupted his independence, and she found herself contemplating what could have been.
A useless dream. Tinek did not seem unhappy being bonded to her, and she was more than grateful for his thoughts which kept her firmly grounded in this reality and not the past. Torleik's question brought her out of her thoughts, and she shook her head, tossing her long, crimson and white threads around her neck and face. "No, not all. Certain species pick their kinds," she explained. "The only reason Tinek and I were able to bond is because my mother is an equine. Griffins tend to choose the unicorns. I know a pegasus who is bonded to a phoenix," she mused aloud. "Some of the eggs hatch and never bond - they simply fly away."
When Tinek and herself inquired about his horns, she waited for his story, watching her silver dragon stop a few feet away from Torleik, looking between Ophelia and the stranger. He was interested in this story as well, and he would listen through Ophelia's mind. She had an interesting way of translating the barely understandable gibberish into something that sounded like a full sentence.
When he explained the origins of his horn markings, Tinek's eyes widened and he looked up at the markings with reverence. Ophelia took the story and analyzed it, also looking at his horns. Did the moon goddess have other places of worship? Why not? Would she bless his horns so openly? She considered Mesec, the Goddess' son, and smiled. To create such a beautiful and clever boy meant that this divine female had to be magnanimous, and Ophelia decided that she believed Torleik. "Thank you for telling us," she replied.
When the stallion moved to ask Tinek a question, the silver dragon looked up and blinked a few times before looking over at Ophelia. "He asked what it is like to fly," she explained in her head, waiting his answer. She received it and smiled. Often times when he flew, she would enter his mind and experience what he did, but the height and weightlessness was so unsettling that she could not last long without feeling as if she would fall over. "Tinek says that flying is normal, but walking is slow and cumbersome. He says flying is freedom." Ophelia twitched her whiskers and blinked a few snowflakes from her lashes.
"I find it to be quite the opposite. The sensation of flying through his mind is nauseating and too quick. I much prefer the feeling of my hooves firmly on the ground." The pale princess clarified this firmly to which Tinek snorted in disbelief before shaking his horned head and shrugging his silver wings.
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