PERSEPHONE

Interest pricked Persephone’s ears at the mention of Shamwari’s name, and eased her cautiousness some. If this man had already met Shamwari, and her ally had not told her to watch out for him, then he must have made an acceptable impression. With that in mind, she accepted his offered muzzle and extended her own to exchange breaths.

Before either of them could say more, however, the sound of twigs snapping and leaves rustling underfoot drew Persephone’s attention, and she turned her head to see Evren approaching them. Persephone’s stomach squirmed a little – whether with nerves, passion or some combination of both, she wasn’t sure. It had not been long since the conversation between them that had changed everything, and she was still settling into the new roles they had taken in each other’s lives. There was some sense of awkwardness and uncertainty at times, but mostly Persephone felt relief that they had shared their private burdens, and of course the utmost pleasure of Evren’s company whenever she had it.

A smile spread across her lips as she watched Evren draw near and set up beside her. Persephone eased her weight onto one side, relaxing and leaning into her companion ever so slightly. It felt like where she belonged. She might have begun to forget that their visitor was there as well, had he not spoken then.

She turned her dark eyes back to the stallion. Rille. She listened with interest as he explained his links to the Forest. Persephone enjoyed hearing about the history of her land – it was a mystery she had been able to piece together only parts of over the years. This land is older than any of us. She nodded in agreement. The way he spoke, she wondered if he already knew about the recent war.

He was certainly not wrong. These trees had seen much suffering.

“Of course,” Persephone replied with a nod of her head. “I can help you find your way, if you’d like.”

She paused a moment, glancing between Evren and Rille. As always, Persephone liked to get to the point, and she often found that doing so gave her a good first impression of other leaders based on their reactions.

“Our neighbours are welcome freely in the Forest, as long as they cause no trouble among the herd. I don’t know if Shamwari mentioned the recent war to you, but if he did I’m sure you will understand that we prefer to stand united here on Luthien. There are more important things to worry about than always looking over your shoulder in your own home, I hope you would agree.”

all of your demons will wither away

mixed, bay varnish roan, 14.3hh