Rowena was consumed by grief when news of Circe's passing reached her. Stumbling upon Osiris had turned her grief into something else. His appearance, looking so much like Vodnik, enabled her. She could hold on to the past while telling herself she was moving on. Rowena has tolerated his abrasive personality because it's what she believes she deserves. In being with Osiris, Rowena could focus on being his mare, raising Elvira, and burying her own truth.

Rowena has done nothing but let others down. She is touched by a darkness she can't escape, and leaves a trail of death and destruction in her wake. Echo and Dances are better off without her. It is both this notion, and Osiris' possessiveness that have kept her with him so long, but now that she has returned to the islands, and to the Ridge, her resolve is shaken.

The dark mare finds her truth climbing out of its shallow grave. Staying with Osiris was akin to running away. Running away doesn't fix anything, the past cannot be forgotten, and the truth can never be destroyed. The grief she felt before returns full force, strengthened now by the guilt she feels for leaving Dances and Echo behind. Being here, so close to where she last saw them, leaves her in a constant state of wondering. Where are they now?

Sullen, the black mare walks the shoreline alone. A heavy fog hangs low along the coast, a hazy atmosphere reflective of her mood. Visibility is low, but Rowena is not concerned for her own safety in such a state. Let strange stallions steal her or predators eat her. Her is not a life worth saving, and after all she's been through, not much else could bring her down. She is already at the bottom.

Self preservation, however, is not a conscious desire, but an instinct. Her apathy doesn't stop her from shying away as a startling call pierces the fog, and a menacing form charges at her flank. Rowena's ears flatten against her skull, and she turns to face her foe. Trapped between her would-be attacker, and the water's edge, she sets back on her haunches, ready to rear and strike.

But before she has the chance, his face becomes clear through the haze. Fear is quickly replaced by bewilderment. Dances?" She answers his question with another question, and for a moment she just stares at him. Here he stands before her, looking so much different than she remembers. New lines of age crease his face. There is so much reading in his expression to be misinterpreted. Rowena's first reaction is to blame herself. This is not the happy reunion she imagined, should she ever be reunited with Dances. He hesitates. His face is wild with the same surprise that's in her own, and there is more to it, which Rowena assumes is disappointment in her.

Rowena takes a halting step forward, then thinks better of it. No, he won't want to touch her now, not after she's been gone for so long. He surely hates her for taking leave like that. He must have been happier without her doom and gloom to darken his days.

Such thoughts expand the pit of despair forming in her chest and suddenly it's hard to breathe. Rowena takes a step back, shaking her head. "Yes, this is Rowena, but it's not me you want." her actions seem to say. And then the tears start falling. Her forelock clings to her dampened face as she turns to look away.