Common

Oh, how she hated winter's kiss; her thin skin would have never adjusted well to the brutal cold of the Northern isles, and even now, failed to protect her against even autumn's slight chill. The Desert Queen shivered beneath the light breeze that swept playfully across the Commons, but did not let her discomfort distract her from her mission.

The Desert needed more members if it were to thrive, and Rougaru was doing a pisspoor job of proving himself, no matter how grandiose he made his plans for revenge out to be. Thankfully, he had her. And now that she carried another of his irritating spawn, she was damn sure going to make sure that he succeeded because there was no way in hell that she was going to get herself saddled with another Wulfric again with no one else to watch over him.

Mares of various shapes and sizes dotted the Commons, many of whom were already being courted and claimed by various figures. There was one painted mare that was vaguely familiar to Vanya; she didn't remember ever speaking to the champagne mare, but she was fairly certain she had once led a land adjacent to Paradise and that Rougaru had built some sort of alliance or relationship with her at one point. She was on her way to intercept her in an attempt to coax some news of Atlantis' current state when a different call rang out over the Commons. Vanya turned toward it instinctively and was pleased to find a lone mare, ripe for the plucking. She lifted her own dished face to call sweetly back and abandoned her original target in favor of this more lucrative target.

The two of them bore little in resemblance to each other. Compared to the dun, Vanya looked as fragile as fine china, and would be easy to underestimate if you could not see the intelligence behind her gaze. What struck Vanya most, however, was the resemblance between this dun mare and the woman that Rougaru had spent years mourning. She did not bear the same lightened flanks or gaudy stripe through her mane, but the resemblance was there. Enough, perhaps, to help him see that he had spent too long waiting on ghosts when he had better things to put his time into.

"Hello there," Vanya murmured as she danced closer, a pleasant smile curling on her lips. "You look far better prepared for this weather than I fear I ever shall be," she said lightly with a soft laugh as she settled near enough to the dun to indicate to any outside parties that this nameless woman was otherwise engaged. If she could avoid forcing a claim she would, but she wouldn't hesitate to leap forward and mark the other mare if it appeared that someone was aiming to interrupt. "My name is Vanya, I'm the queen of the Desert back on Salem. Have you ever been?" She had tilted her head inquisitive at the last to imply interest rather than manipulation, and let her own voice fade to silence as she waited for a response.

Vanya had not had much luck in the past with claiming mares on Rougaru's behalf, but she refused to give up trying. The first she'd brought home had borne him a child and then disappeared to places unknown, and the second hadn't even bothered to grant her even that courtesy. She was determined to do better this time, even if it required her to feign true interest in the wellbeing of a herdmate.