“But, has that not always been the way?”
Alarm flares within Evren’s chest as he says this, and for a moment she thinks Rille is going to sympathize with their enemies’ way of thinking. She stiffens in preparation to argue with him, but when he elaborates, she relaxes, and a small smile pulls at the corner of her mouth at his comments about Warsaw’s ego. She doesn’t entirely agree with him - on the idea of leading a herd always being a mare’s responsibility - but it’s refreshing to hear such a take from a stallion.
With a side glance at Persephone, Evren says, “Before I was born, and even when I was young, I heard that it was rare for a mare to lead a herd on the islands. Things have begun shifting in the past decade or so, but we still have a long way to go. There are a lot of stallions who seem to be… resistant to this change.”
Evren glances again at Persephone, her thoughts threatening to turn toward those dark memories of the days Warsaw had held Persephone prisoner on a faraway island. She pushes them away, choosing instead to think about how she and Persephone have, together and separately, helped to lead by example for such social change. Her heart warms with pride to think that their daughters will grow up knowing mare-led herds as their norm.
As Rille finally leads them down a path, Evren falls into step close beside Persephone, so that the Forest lead is in the middle, with Rille and Evren flanking on either side. They walk in companionable silence for some minutes, with nothing but birdsong, the gentle rush of wind through leaves, and the creaking of heavy boughs to fill the quiet.
In those moments, Evren feels a kind of peace she hasn’t experienced in some time. With the three of them strolling side-by-side, the breeze cool against their coats and the scents of the forest thick in their nostrils, everything feels as it should be. The future of the Forest - and Luthien as a whole - has been unstable for so long, but Evren senses a strong ally in Rille: one equal to Shamwari, who will keep to his word and fight for a better future alongside them. Time will tell if he lives up to this, but Evren is making an effort to think more positively these days.
Her gaze is focused on the ground head to ensure she trips over no roots or rocks, but she jerks her head up to glance over Persephone’s back when Rille makes a little wordless noise of interest. She eyes the mushrooms he’s examining, but to her they are just mushrooms: nothing she would have noticed had he not pointed them out. Nonetheless, she listens with interest, for Rille has a way of speaking that quietly commands attention. When he asks about fairies, however, she gapes at him blankly, uncertain if he’s serious. When it’s quite clear he is, Evren side-eyes Persephone with a small smile, but says nothing.
Tactful as ever, Persephone changes the topic of conversation to Rille’s mother, which reminds Evren of the question she’d wanted to ask earlier. She waits until Rille has answered Persephone’s question, then pipes up with her own. “What were your family’s names? Maybe we know of them.”
12; mutt; bay tobiano; 15.3hh |
