he stands, a rock at the shore of a swirling sea, and allows himself to be the shoulder that the small mare needs in that moment. the earlier bashfulness that kept him chaste and gentleman-like is gone, with her bluster, and so now he is free to stroke the side of her shoulder with a tenderness he hadn’t expected, caramel colored mane tumbling over his dark eyes. though he wasn’t sure where his place would be in this unknown land, he was gaining some idea of how he’d like to spend his days. wrapped in tender touches such as these and offering comfort where he could to those he might come to know. it warmed a part of his soul that had craved something other than the childish life he left behind. the words he had offered were vague enough, for he had no true knowledge of what the little mare was after, but they offered a general type of support that he thought she could appreciate and they were the truth as best he knew it. he does not know the gođi nor anything of their gifts, but he wondered what type of kindness they had shown Faldne. his galloping heart finally slows, calming the quick and unsteady rhythm and he feels stronger than he had before, when he first mounted the shore. when Faldne softens, after chastising him, she seems to crumble inwardly somewhat. he has looks, kind words, a soft warm body, but it all feels not enough then in his desperation to cheer her. had she been a sister, he may have resorted to lighthearted teasing, but this hurt seemed too deep to mend in that manner. he catches sight of her eyes, not nearly as hard and laughing as they once seemed and he reaches toward her face with his grey-pink lips to brush away the tangles of dark mane that threatened to cover them. he feels that earlier nakedness creeping back as she speaks his name, though there is little of the desire that marked her voice earlier. he shakes his head, disagreeing brusquely and wholeheartedly even though he knew so little of her. ”you are only a fool if you give up.” there would come a time when perhaps he would think himself a fool for continuing on, but he is young, and he believes still in the poetic goodness of the world. his beige ears tip outward as she speaks again and he pulls his head up and away slightly so that he might see her more clearly, though his body stays steady against hers. evandr wonders what could have given her such an opinion and what she must know of the world for her to offer such a prayer. he thinks then, that she must not have known many kind creatures in her life. ”you are better off than you think. you are here, and have a new friend. that at least, will not change.” he notices the blue of her eyes disappear and lowers his fine head once more, sidling closer still so that he might rest his whiskered jaw on the curve of her back. his eyes, sometimes hazel and sometimes green, glance around the meadow, wondering if there would be peace for him now until she had her own, the price such a friendship. |