A smile slid smoothly over Zevulun’s face at Arlo’s initial response. “Ah, a newcomer, huh?” A note of play lifted his tone and his smile grew, excitement only a breath away. Having never been on the Mainlands, Zevulun only knew what life was like among the chain of islands. He’d been told this wasn’t a normal phenomenon and the islands were something special, but he’d never experienced how fascinating they were in that aspect. Instead, once he was old enough to travel, he’d begun to appreciate how different each island was from one another and its inhabitants, too. He wondered, briefly, if Arlo would light up at the idea when he told her.
“Let me be the first to welcome you to the islands.” Zevulun said, flashing his characteristic, charming smile.
To her question he gave a slight nod. “Yes. I was born on the northern island, Tinuvel, and I’ve lived there ever since. I’ve actually never been on the mainland.” Strange, for all of Zevulun’s wants of travel and exploration and his insatiable need to meet new horses and make new friends, he’d never once turned an eye toward the lands off the shore of Crossing Isle. It was always to the islands he turned with a bright eye.
It was then Zevulun noticed the way Arlo’s eyes briefly caught on something that wasn’t him. Curious, he turned his head, freeing up the blind spot directly behind him. At the sight of his daughter, he jolted slightly, his eyes wide with surprise. “Iz? What are you doing here?” He laughed breathlessly and shook his head, stepping with his back legs to swing his end to the side so he could look more clearly down at his daughter. “Did you sneak off after me?”
Zevulun knew he should be cross with her, but there was something… amusing about having his daughter caught with the same thirst for adventure as he. There would be plenty of time for lectures later, particularly as he escorted her home to a surely worried Avalon. His blue eyes moved back to Arlo and he smiled apologetically for the unexpected disruption in the conversation. “Arlo, this is my daughter, Izizel.” He looked pointedly back at Izizel. “Your mother is never going to let us hear the end of this.”
|
