Rougaru blinks mildly at the small mare before him with curiosity shining bright in his emerald green gaze. She was a quiet creature, timid and unsure of herself, that much had been clear to him from their first encounter in the commons. Despite his distaste for Liland, he had let the gray stallion of the Bay slip away with the meek little bird in tow. He had not wanted to frighten her with displays of aggression and hostility even if it was not directed towards her. Though he and the wolf both puffed their chests up bravely and kept their gaze steely-eyed when questioned, even he knew that Zjeena’s level headed calmness had cooled the brash demeanor that had once too made itself so much a part of his life.

’But I am still the dragga wolf of the jungle’ the voice inside his head spoke and he felt his whiskered lips twitch upwards into the beginnings of a smile. Yes, he would always be the wolf of the jungle. The one whose presence was met with disdain or fervent reverence. The beast was okay with that completely.

However her presence in the Bay had not gone forgotten. He had looked forward to meeting her again, at a time when both did not have the fuming image of the gray stallion straddling between them with snarky comments or commanding tones. He had watched her join the others on the shores of Paradise when Zjeena called them to her. He had stood aside and let his stoic queen of ice speak life to her story and inwardly felt the wolf smoldering with renewed hatred for Liland. The bay stallion signed his death sentence as far as the wolf was concerned, the day he dared to speak so lowly to Zjeena that day in the Bay. Perhaps there would have come a time in which bygones could have been bygones. But hearing her story told again, the weight of which she carried the stallion’s malice in the form of the unborn child that now grew so rapidly in the late winter months… it could never have changed him; even if it was Zjeena that asked him herself. He would have spent every moment of his life to see that the brash stallion never felt an inch of happiness for all that he had stolen from Zjeena. He and Monster would make sure of it.

But that time of waiting was over, the rumors that flew were that Liland had disappeared from the islands. Already the sounds of another’s reign over ruled the discord that Liland himself had sewn. Like the first rains after a fiercely burning fire swept the lands, the islands were beginning return to a sense of normality. No longer did he feel the need to look over his shoulder, no longer did his chocolate skin stay tense with preparation for the next battle in which he would face off to protect those he carried so close to his soul. The world around him was slowly becoming calmer.

Pidgeon speaks up now, her timid voice unsure of itself and he finds himself relaxing in the company of her presence, hoping that his relaxed posture might somehow manage to calm whatever nervousness had her skin prickling and eyes darting to her feet. Her comment about the warmth is a tender subject but he strains to keep the grimace from his eyes. It was perhaps cruel to bring the mares of the Bay over to such a different island from the bay especially in the dead of winter. Most of them, save for the bright bay stallion he had seen lingering protectively near the watchful mare of sandy hues, had already grown in a thick winter coat ready to shield them from the biting cold of Tinuvel. Atlantis’ tepid winter climate meant that many, like Valka, Grier and others were even more miserable with bellies swollen heavily with foals. He was not proud by any means, but what was done was done and he could not do anything else about it.

She goes on to say how nice it is and Rougaru finds his own gaze drawn to the dense jungle that sprawled before them. Sure some might feel a sense of overwhelming, especially with the various shades of green, but Rougaru found himself drawn to the shadows. Perhaps it was the beast inside of him that found comfort in what others might be wary of, perhaps it was simply his own assurance. He had traveled every inch of this island so many times that he was sure he could trace the paths in his sleep. She goes on to say that Grier was her friend, an observation he had clearly detected in the closeness in which the two remained even as the others began to disperse through the herd territory. He did not blame them, this land was foreign to their eyes, surely if he himself found his own herd displaced he too would be drawn to keep them close in the search of a new home. A soft smile warms his lips; at least they had each other.

She mentions Zjeena and Rougaru can feel the sourness once more rise in his stomach. Hearing her story now, even though he and Monster had a front seat view, was still a tough bite to swallow. She stammers over her words and instinctively reaches to bump his whiskered maw against the molten colors of her spotted fur. ”I fight always will fight for those dearest to me.” he breathes, the tone of his words deep with the earnestness of meaning. He does not want her to dwell on the seriousness though, this was meant to be a time of peace and not war. He did not want even the meekest among them to feel the need to walk upon eggshells as he had seen Zjeena attempt to do upon her return to the Bay. It was not healthy. A single dial tilts towards where Grier had been resting beneath the shade of the palms. He wondered if she had taken into consideration Gnome’s advice about relief from the heat in the shallows. ”I am glad you like it here Pidgeon. It is quite a lovely place if you give it a chance. Always there is food to be found and always fresh water to drink. Have you seen the birds? Bright colorful feathers, bright as a rainbow against a stormy sky, they flock to the fruit trees and though they are quite noisy, I think them fun to watch… if you ever think to look up. The jungle is not quite as dark as it seems.” he adds cheerfully. Thick tail of cream and caramel flicks idly against his muscular haunches as he glances once more towards the beach before his eyes search her small face. ”If you do not mind me asking… how did you and Grier meet? Was it in the Bay or had you known her from the lands where you came?” he asks once more feeling the curiosity about the small mare rise in his mind.