He felt more relaxed, more confident, once they’d climbed from the dark ocean to the tundra shores of his home. Crossing Isle had been a place of loneliness and confusion for him as a colt but the Bay… the Bay had always been his. He’d grown here from a gangly-legged two-year-old to the stallion he was now, turning five come spring. The tundra had taken him and shaped him, from the first hard winter he’d arrived in with a coat too thin for the elements to every winter since. No other island, no other home, would have him now, nor would he have it. As far as Nephilim was concerned he would one day die here and the tundra would take his flesh and he would carry on the same cycle that had begun and ended generation after generation after generation.

His gold eyes flashed to Dany, watching as she took in the glorious sight of his home. Snow was thick on the peaks of the mountains and soon, as autumn winded down, it would begin to gather through the forests, too. Her compliment made him smile, made him proud, and he knew he was lucky to have invited her to his home. Dany saw the tundra for what it was and she would fare just as beautifully here, her cream coat a compliment to the soft, muted colors the tundra expressed.

“Thank you,” he said warmly, smile still lingering.

Nephilim trailed her as she walked, allowing her to explore as she wished, see whatever she wanted to see and go wherever she wanted to go. There would be time for her to meet the herd, for her to explore all that the Bay had to offer, so there was no rush. Nephilim was content to keep her company, too, still intrigued by her, finding that with each piece of herself she showed him he was smiling more and more.

He exhaled a gentle breath of nearly-translucent white air against her skin as her touch against his cheek left warmth tingling on his flesh. Again his insides quivered and tightened, his excitement increasing at her closeness and even more as he breathed in and drew mostly her scent. “You’re welcome,” he said, and was impressed he managed to keep his vocals level when she affected him so. His gaze burned on her and there was a soft lapse of comfortable silence before he spoke, voice low. “I’m glad you decided to come.”