It was probably stupid for Vita Nova to chance the long swim to Tinuvel so close to the start of winter. She'd lived on the arctic island long enough to truly understand the risks and perils that came with trying to get to and from Tinuvel this time of year. But she was restless. The Prairie had a dark cloud hanging over it ever since the death of Brienne. And despite the heartbreak the young mare felt for her brother, she couldn't stand to wait there, idly, and watch him and his son grieve her untimely death. But she couldn't go back to the Peak either... Not until she made the trip to the mainlands like she'd promised her sister Oswin. But the thought of seeing Nephilim gave her pause.
It took Vita Nova a long time to stop day dreaming of Nephilim. After his sudden disappearance those years ago, which uprooted her life completely, she fantasized about the stallion she was so infatuated with for so long. Even more recently, during the lowest lows of her captivity in the Desert, she returned to him in her mind, forever a bright spot, despite the mixed and complicated feelings she felt for the golden-speckled stallion, even now. It was Oswin, her sister in the Peak, who'd drummed it all back to the surface recently. Nephilim was still around, lurking at the edge of the mainland. He was alive but barely, according to Oswin. And for whatever reason, her sister thought she was compelling enough to help him and his family. This last part weighed heavily on Nova's heart lately. It was a monumental moment for the otherwise mostly self-serving mare, to put her own feelings aside in an attempt to help others. She didn't want to. But she also didn't know if she could live with herself if she didn't try to help his children. She knew what it felt like to be deserted: first by her father, then her mother, and then Nephilim. Plenty of others came and went, too. His children in the Bay didn't deserve that.
One day, she knew she'd go. But not today. She hadn't drummed up the courage necessary yet. But maybe Warsaw would inspire her.
Vita Nova would be lying if she said she wasn't intrigued by the big, grey stallion. It was hard to pinpoint just what it was about him that she was so curious about. But something about him felt familiar, in the same way Orkaan had been. Maybe it was his bizarre, old-fashioned way of viewing the world. Or maybe it was whatever was bubbling underneath the surface, which seemed so dark and twisty, that Vita Nova felt drawn to expose. Either way, she committed his face and his words to memory with a promise to revisit him after their abrupt meeting on the Crossing Isle. A few weeks had passed since she watched from behind pale blue eyes as he waded into the sea and drifted away, leaving her with a promise to visit whenever she liked.
Vita Nova was essentially a nomad, drifting from home to home ever since her brother freed her from Koray's clutches and Orkaan disappeared. She is reminded of the two-toned splashed stallion briefly as she pulls herself from the waters into the brisk mountain air at the mouth of the Inlet, heavy plumes of carbon dioxide rising from her nostrils with every passing breathe. Orkaan's stale scent is long gone however, having been replaced with Warsaw's thick musk. Nova caught the occasional hint of a mare among the evergreen trees as she moved with haste in an attempt to warm up her cold muscles and dry her damp coat. But she remained quiet, not once issuing a call for the stallion who ruled here, wandering and observing until she found someone or something interesting. Vita Nova assumed it wouldn't be long before he'd find her anyway.
4 | Mare | Evaline x Valentine | Smoky Back Splash | 15 hh | © Vinyl |
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