Falls

It had been years since he'd been here, yet time seemed to have been suspended around the falls.

The water still fell, glasslike and crystalline, over the same slate pebbles with the same familiar gurgle. It was quiet today - not another soul in sight, or at least that's what his tired eyes told him. Time had been forgiving on the land, but not so forgiving on the man. Though arguably in his prime - strong, wise to the tricks of life - there was no doubt that he'd been a less troubled man when he'd roamed these shores those many years before. His hide bore scars now, tattooed memories of things he'd rather forget and try as he might to be the teen he once was, his eyes deceived him - Asche had grown.

Slowly he approached the pool, one tentative hoof at a time until his hocks broke the surface and cast minuscule ripples dancing over the surface. He remained in the shallows for a second, lost in the sensation, the memories this place brought to the forefront of his mind. He'd fallen in love here - or so he'd thought. Was it love? Infatuation, perhaps? Time had made him second guess. He wasn't sure what he could trust of his own mind, and how much of what he recalled of these islands was recounted through rose tinted vision. This was his homeland, he always came back, and somehow was always driven away. This time, he vowed silently, would be different. The peace this place - these falls - brought him, was something he could no longer deprive himself of.

Slowly he waded deeper into the cool blue water, allowing the mud and dust from his travels to wash away, and with it the stress of the journey he'd endured. Rolling his shoulders back, he craned his neck up towards the sky and let out a heavy, hoarse sigh, flicking his forelock out of his eyes and staring up at the midday sun. He squinted at the light, gradually progressing towards a dappled patch of shade provided by a tree that slightly overlapped the pool. Relaxed, he turned his back to the falls and set his eyes upon the horizon - he would wait. Someone would come - or not - and what would happen after - well, he was not sure. He was not sure of much - besides the fact that he was home, for good.