Falls

Solomon

She is aloof, determined to keep him at bay with her coolness, but he takes heart from the way that she smiled in response to his jest. Solomon had spent weeks trailing back and forth across the center isle in search of of her golden figure, determined to not lose her. His attraction to her went far deeper than that of her golden coat and the white that trailed alluringly up her body. She was gorgeous, but she was also fierce and determined. She had not simply rolled over and accepted his rule without making him sacrifice to have her, and while he had not been exactly pleased at her demands at the time, they had equally agreed to the risk.

He of her queenship, and she of his claim.

Together they had continued to grow the Cove. While she had not utilized the powers that she had fought for, Solomon was well aware that her quiet support in their home alongside Daciana was what had allowed him to travel, claim and fight as freely as he had.

"Well?" He echoes her word with a terse smile that does not reach his eyes until something in him relents and he lets out a sigh of equal parts frustration and chagrin. The indifferent way she reacts to his touch - as different as night and day from when they had first met - quells the worst of his anger at the risk she had taken and was still taking. As much as he would like to stay angry with her (and will perhaps still be so when he is alone) he is far too grateful to see that she is unharmed. It does cross his mind as well that while she cannot shirk his claim in the Crossing, that there are plenty of other ways she might find traction in freeing herself from affection.

"Of all the words I might use to describe the past few days, I'm not sure I would count well among them." His words are honest, even if his frustration cannot be hidden. Suave words elude him and he is reduced to offering bare honesty. "It would be better if you were home with me."

He waits for a long moment, quietly keeping his attention on her until the silence becomes almost unbearably long before turning to Ylva. The solemn, barefaced honesty he had faced Marzanna with softens although he has not quite regained all of the lighthearted teasing he might have otherwise faced her with.

"One could argue that fate just keeps throwing you in my path, ripe for the interrupting." A lopsided lift of his lips follows his mild jest. A part of him almost expects Bjorn to crash the party now, considering the pony stallion had played a part in his first meeting of both mares. Truth be told, he very much preferred this trio to that one. "You could always cut fate a break and just come to the Cove on your own."

His smile grows lighter and more genuine for a brief moment before sobering as Solomon inclines his head toward Marzanna as he clarifies their relationship for Ylva. He does not wish to injure her pride with talk of her defeat or to grovel at her hooves by pretending it hadn't happened. Ysabel had clearly weathered multiple battles and had the edge of experience, and even with that as it was, she had still nearly lost to Marzanna who had been emboldened by her fierceness. It was not only fear that filled his heart at watching the two of them fight, but awe and pride as well. Marzanna had deserved the mantle of queen while she wore it, and could do so easily again if she chose to. Especially after Ysabel had explained her reasoning.

He knows that such talk is not for now. It is a careful line to walk with a creature as spirited as Marzanna and he is not entirely certain how well of a job he is doing, but he tries anyway. "Luck and persistence," he starts with a mild chuckle. He could speak to her time reigning as his queen, and he still might, but he does not yet know what the icy distant demeanor she holds is covering. It could be true indifference, but he'd put his money on righteous fury. "I met Marzanna in the commons over a year ago and only managed to convince her to come home with me by the skin of my teeth."

Far more had happened in the year's time that they had spent together. He had grown to see her as more than just a pretty mare that aroused his interest. Even his initial fear that she was no more than a woman grasping for power had been proven false quickly. Every day that he watched her grow into her role had filled him with fierce pride that he had managed to win a woman like her. His admiration of her had only grown when they had created life together, and it occurred to him that she might feel as though he had only wanted her for her womb. That once he had sired a child in her belly that he no longer cared about her happiness. Nothing could be further from the truth, but circumstances had conspired against him, and now here they were.

"How are you and.. Runar, right?" He finally asks as he turns from Marzanna to Ylva. He still worries for his once-queen's reaction, but Ylva had been a source of fascination for him for some time as well, and he is not immune to her presence. Even without the lure of the fall season he is drawn to her and the uniquely pinkish hue of her coat. He had not hunted her down after their last interaction owing to the clear disdain she had shown for him after dropping the bombshell of Harley Quinn's association, but he had not wholly given up on her entirely.

He had, however, intended to wait until spring or even summer before visiting her again to see if her fascination with the Crossing had begun to wane.

Dutch Harness Horse Mutt | Champagne Grullo Tobiano Stallion | 17 Hands | The Cove