†
She is as surprised to see him as he is to see her. Temblor flips his ears to the side as she squeals, standing patiently as she backpedals before registering she is in no danger. They speak at the same time, and Temblor allows his voice to fade as a benign smile crosses his face. She is so earnest. "It's all right," he reassures the painted mare, recalling his own blunderings when he was newly out in society. Even the most major faux-pas (of which speaking over someone else can hardly be counted among) seemed to have been endured good-naturedly as he fumbled his way further into adulthood, and as he watches the young mare shift her weight uneasily he understands why: they'd all been there, too.
It almost appears she is bound by her embarrassment as she fidgets, searching for an answer to his question, but she speaks articulately and even offers him a small smile before introducing herself. Temblor returns her smile warmly with one of his own, then adjusts his weight to a comfortable leftward lean to indicate supreme ease, hoping his relaxed posture will help further settle her nerves. "Welcome, Hirka. My name is Temblor. Funnily enough, I was just on my way to the Shore to do some exploring of my own— I've only recently settled here."
He pauses to look around them, recalling how foreign and strange the tropical landscape was to him when he first arrived here. Some of the hibiscus have come into bloom, and he nods his head to one such plant to draw her attention to the wide, soft petaled flowers popping with color among the greenery. "There's lots of flowers here, from spring through summer so far as I can tell, and it almost always smells nice." There had been one plant, in a far corner of his jungle, shaped like a big pitcher and apparently hollow. That one had smelled like death, and Temblor had wisely avoided it, preferring to smell open ocean air or even the humid, green decay of the jungle floor. At least that detritus smelled inoffensive.
Temblor's gaze settles on hers again. "I can show you around a little, if you'd like. This jungle seems to stretch into all of Atlantis's territories, so perhaps these flowers are old news," he continues with a chuckle. "But I'd be happy to show you around regardless. And, perhaps you can tell me how it differs from the Shore, if indeed it does."
TEMBLOR
& swallows you whole
|
|