He still hadn’t decided if he’d made the right decision in returning to make a life here. He’d always feared running across those he’d left behind but, so far, every face he’d met was new. Or, if they were an old friend they were just that. The traces of his past had been erased with him, and Zevulun wasn’t sure if that was something to feel relieved by or to be depressed by.
Sure, it would have been hard to look into the faces of the ones he’d hurt, but at least he’d see them again. He’d know they were alright and wouldn’t have to worry about him.
Eventually he’d gather up the courage to make for the Bay. He’d already decided he needed to visit Tinuvel during the summer. The northern island took much, much longer to thaw from winter to spring. What would he do if he went there and no one he knew remained? What would he do if someone he’d loved and walked away from was there, having had to pick up the pieces and move on in his disappearance.
He’d been young and distraught by Avalon’s absence shortly after the birth of their twin sons, his mind hadn’t been in the right place. Then Oswin had taken him and his sisters to the Mainland into a secluded valley where their father - who they’d thought was dead - was standing, very much alive.
Then…
Zevulun shuddered, swallowing and pulling away from the memory he hated to ever think of. It made him sick - he could still remember the sound as Mariael screamed; the thud as her hooves hit their father’s side; the breathless strain of his lungs emptying of air; the grunt as he fell onto an awkwardly lying branch.
The smell of blood…
His pale lashes fluttered quick as he blinked rapidly and pulled his focus back to the present. As he sucked in a deep breath through his pale pink muzzle he instead smelled the Falls. Zevulun released his next breath in a big sigh and let his pale-blue eyes reach around him to find a distraction. He did his best not to think about his family, to keep those horrible memories away for good.
The thing he saw nearest him, though still a good few paces off, was a pretty painted mare standing off on her own. Zevulun’s ears swung forward and pointed at her before he rumbled out a greeting nicker to get her attention. He lowered his head and walked toward her, trying to come off as non-threatening as he could and excited at the prospect of a good conversation with someone new to distract him. Zevulun came to an easy halt and stretched his neck, putting his nose near her to exchange customary breaths. She smelled as sweet as she looked and it took everything in him not to smile as he pulled his head back.
“Hope you don’t mind the company, I’m afraid I’m not very good at being by myself.” Now he smiled. “I’m Zevulun, by the way. Do you… live on the islands or are you new?”
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