As they walked side beside and Adelheid had begun to speak, the stallion stopped in his tracks after her first sentence. The sudden stop tripped her up and she pulled short her own movements with a snort. Annoyed, she returned his baleful gaze with a thinly veiled glare. This was going to be an interesting test and a careful dance between them. Glancing over him, she felt as though everything they were going to say between each other was going to have to be carefully considered and most likely spoken through clenched teeth. She knew she needed to open her mind to him though. Remove some of her armor and set aside her shield. She almost visibly braced herself, not for a hit from him, but for the challenge she knew she was going to face in trying to hear him out against her own hard head. From what he had said on the cliffs, Adelheid knew that in their cores, there was a real chance they both wanted the same thing. More or less. She was going to have to remind herself a number of times to hear him out.

Rade began speaking. Immediately Adelheid had to bite her tongue, hard, to keep from interrupting him. History and memories are what drove her to action. Along with lessons learned from her own past. As he continued, she was thankful she had not jumped down his throat. She nodded agreeably, though it was clear from her expression she was mulling his words in her mind, evaluating them amongst what she knew of why the Peak had decided to step into herd affairs. Whereas her sisters had leapt to conclusions about Rade, Adelheid made a conscious effort to watch his language as well as listen.

She could not deny that he was right. Once the two lands had been great, and they could be great again. The idea of both rising, hand in hand, was so forgien to her she could barely comprehend what it would look like. It could be beautiful, or it could be terrible. She glanced back in the direction they came, again knowing he was right as he parroted his own words from the cliffs. There were many stallions and many mares who most likely shared their desire for change, they just needed to be found. When Cullen had chosen a side of the war and Macabre declared an allegiance had is been by force, complacency, or choice that others had followed? When Bozena issued the call for mutiny, had it been fear that held them back, or support for their leader. Turning forward, her ear twisted in contemplation. Where the herd stallions hesitant to send their colts to the Lagoon for fear of corruption?

Her face snaked back to him, and her eyes narrowed. There were nuances to his thoughts that were both true and false. Change did begin with an individual, the transformation he spoke of took a collective. She heaved an exhale and looked up at the sky, evaluating the season and time passing above them. She was sure her sisters were going to loathe her for the things she was about to do. Her tongue clicked against her teeth as she looked back at him, she forced her body to relax just a little as it had tensed with her effort to keep her shield down.

I agree. her voice was almost a growl as she admitted it to the stallion, uncomfortable with the way he seemed to be trying to see through her, to her motivations and thoughts. The Lagoon election is in the summer when there is no mutiny? If someone of a different...mindset...takes Cullen’s place, I can meet with you and the new Boss to talk about moving forward. She did not believe deals could be struck, or even proposed without the small steps he spoke of first. What he had said on the cliffs had been grand and nearly impossible for just one or two to carry out without support. But they could start. If Cullen remains in power, we can talk about us moving forward, and who would be on board. Her mind flicked through options and strategies. Shaking her head, she tried to bring herself back to now. I cannot promise anything on behalf of my sisters. But what can I do? As a show of good faith. If they both had to earn their trust and all.