Vita Nova stood frozen in the soft sand in between the two stallions, unsure of how to react. Her petite, chiseled head was held high over her withers. Her ashen colored ears were pricked forward at attention. The long, wavy strands of her dark tail was all that moved, and only in the brief breeze that swept through the low lying oasis, as the weight of the situation before Nova pressed heavily upon her. Shamwari. She'd heard that name so many times from the mouth of her mother. Sometimes in a kind and worrisome maternal tone, but mostly in a cursing, insulting one. They traveled through unfamiliar territory for weeks. Nova nearly drowned on the swim to the mainland. And they never found him. Never.
She'd grown to hate the name Shamwari. She'd created an idea of what this long lost brother looked like in her head, and it did not match the description of the stocky, copper colored stud who stood before her today, which made the situation even more jarring. Luckily for Nova, Orhan and Shamwari just kept talking, buying her some time to come up with an appropriate thing to say in response to all this news. Clearly her mother had returned only to find out, like she did, that Valentine was no longer here. So she went running to the second best stallion she knew, the son whom had disappeared on her. Nova huffed visibly at this idea, rolling her crystal blue eyes as she thought about it. But Shamwari seemed genuine. He seemed to care about Evaline and clearly care enough about her to come and find her here. But he reminded her too much of Nephilim. What was with stallions abandoning those who cared for them and running away? She knew too well now what it felt like to be grief stricken and without answers. It put Evaline's journey to find Shamwari in a clearer light.
"Mother." She said quietly, looking directly at Shamwari now. "She forgave you after what you did to her?"
Nova took a step forward now, her nostrils flared as she stared hard down her nose at her older brother. "She was devastated. She searched the world looking for you. And she ruined my life by taking me with her."
The young mare realized she was in a delicate situation here. She was still so new to this herd and barely knew Orhan or his family at all. But she didn't want to leave. Especially not with Shamwari. She didn't want to make a bad impression by letting her emotions get away from her either. A dark gray lobe flicked to the side as Orhan spoke, but Nova didn't look at him. So Shamwari had taken over her father's land and was friends with her new leader? She felt as if she couldn't escape this guy, one who seemingly had so much control over her life. So she merely snorted in response. "We may be related Shamwari, but we're not friends." Nova spat with a flick of her tail. "But if our mother was able to forgive you, I am willing to do so too."
Nova bobbed her head before taking a few steps forward to share a breathe with her brother. Upon retreating, she looked at Orhan with wide eyes and flashed him a weak smirk before turning to face the two again. She felt so uncomfortable in this situation, as both stallions watched and gauged how she reacted. So she tried to focus on what she could control, and that was the conversation. "How is she doing on Salem? I bet she hates it." Nova said with a giggle, thinking about her palomino mother sweating in the sand. "Did you see Valentine before he left?"
4 | Mare | Evaline x Valentine | Smoky Back Splash | 15 hh | © Vinyl |
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