[ let me light up the sky]
She needed to get away, she decided, before she made a commitment. Pulse had come to the islands fully prepared to be a loner, a wanderer, for several seasons, but something kept pulling her back to the Inlet. Something kept pulling her back to the men there, to Wonka and Tarrant. First, she needed clarity, she needed to be sure. That’s what she told herself, at least. Pulse was fucking terrified to settle down in the inlet; it was the only territory she had been in, on the only island she had been on. All her other time had been spent in the Crossing, meandering here and there, talking when she felt like talking.
Sometimes, it was to herself.
Really, she needed a break from stallions and time to process how quickly her mind had changed. She thought that she could be happy with Tarrant and Wonka (even though she really still hadn’t talked too much with the latter), and she knew they would both respect her wishes. It was a perfect match for her, but she was still terrified. What if they changed, what if they did not want her? Yes, she needed this.
It was with these thoughts weighing on her mind that she found herself carefully picking her way along the side of Vulcan Peak. Growing up on a mountainside certainly had its advantages, but her mountain was forested instead of rocky. She managed, however, only slipping once or twice due to poorly placed hooves. It had been awhile since she’d tried to walk over rocks that were slippery with snow. As she moved, her breath came in spurts, steam pouring from her nostrils whenever she exhaled. The cold bit at her nose and ears and her tender parts, but thanks to her frequent trips to Tinuvel in the cold water and cold air, her winter coat was mostly grown in, and very thick.
The bay mare looked quite shaggy now, and not at all sleek. It’s why she would doubt any man who would dare call her beautiful. Yet she was not here to see men, nor was she here to stay. Pulse was simply here to see the amazons for herself, to meet the kind of woman who was so independent as to not want a man. It appealed to part of her, but she knew she couldn’t be happy as a Vulcan. Pulse loved the idea of family and herd-life too much, not the intense structure of the Amazon group. Still, a few days here would not be bad. It would help clear her mind, would help her gather courage – and then she would tell Tarrant of her decision.
She paused in her path and blinked. Finally, after being here for an hour, there was another soul! She couldn’t tell much about the mare from this distance, but still. She called out to her and began her approach.
P U L S E
[let me tell you why
i would die for you] |