- the Prairie stands as a symbol of peace and prosperity among the islands
- anyone is welcome to live here so long as they do not bring harm to the Prairie or any of it's residents
- adventure and exploration is not only allowed, but encouraged! residents are asked to use their better judgement and not travel to places that could bring them harm
- the head of the prairie has final say in all prairie matters. the secondary and third positions are not able to be challenged for and are selected by the head
- the guardians take on a more active role in the prairie; they must protect the inhabitants of the prairie and go on patrols of the prairie borderlines and shore. they can welcome strangers to the prairie and invite anyone to live here, though they must inform one of the leaders of any newcomers or visitors
find my nest of salt Posted on January 29, 2024 at 00:26:18 AM by Daire
everything is my fault. . . I'll take the blame
“I want,” he begins, voice low in the night's quiet. There is something in his tone that stills her, pricking her dark ears forward despite herself. “I want to give you the peace you deserve, Daire, and I want to find my own peace with you, even if neither of us really deserve it.” Zevulun's whispered words in the hours before dawn felt very much like a confession, indeed, and a dream. They were a shock and a thrill to her system. After years of denial, was he truly voicing what they had never dared to speak of?
“I don’t want you to lose anything anymore, I want you to gain everything... I just wish I could be the one able to do it.” Daire took the pale stallion in with brimming, hope-starved eyes. A thought trickled in her mind that this had been a dream after all, which made the mare hesitate to look away from him. Was he really saying all of this to her? The black mare nearly trembled. So many things flashed through her mind. Hope at their first meeting. Shame at their arrival. Gratitude in the years between then and now, and loneliness that stretched in the years beyond. Heartbreak in knowing that her daughter should be here instead of her.
“But I know, Daire, I know I can’t.. I know we can’t… but I care for you, deeply.” The brindle couldn't have responded then, even if she had been physically capable, since Zevulun rushed on. The pace of his words swept her up, stealing her voice away. “And I love Vervain, and I love Lir, and even if I should regret it, even if I should hate myself for continuing to tease whatever feelings I felt for you…I can’t, Daire.” She could hardly breathe. The weight of it all broke her heart and put it back together with an aching fullness. Her dark lips parted in an expression of surprise, brows raised and mind racing. “I just can’t. I am always going to feel this way toward you, no matter how much I shouldn’t.”
Nearly dazed, the white-drizzled mare half-shakes her head if only to try and collect herself. In the flurry of it all, Daire stood stone still, her chest tight with the numerous emotions and thoughts flowing through her mind. Words truly fail her as the night stretches between them. Though it takes her time to try to speak, her eyes remain on his. This is their unfailing connection as Daire remains quiet. There is no refusal in her gaze, no denial that she had wanted something more between them. She wouldn't have been able to deny it, even if Zevulun hadn't said anything, but she wouldn't have been able to reach out as he had for her now. Daire would have denied herself that happiness and run.
She had wanted this from the moment he had come to save them that winter not so long ago. He had been the hope that brought them back from the brink, the hope that Daire had tried so long to deny herself. There were reasons for this not to be, for them to turn back now, and there would be consequences. Daire hovered at the edge, wavering toward the pale stallion who might have been a dream after all. Her eyes betrayed the hesitation she felt, knowing how badly she wanted to give up this struggle against her heart. There would be no going back, if they gave in now. So, as much as Daire wanted to put everything aside completely, she had to make sure. She was breathless, voice obviously torn between the surge she felt for him and the knowing of what might come next.
"If... if we give in, there's no going back, Zevulun. Riesling will never forgive you," she murmurs, voice nearly a whisper. Her dark eyes shine in the darkness, affixed to the icy blue of his. Her heart clamors in the confines of Daire's ribcage. Already damned for her transgressions, Daire had to live with it, but Zevulun? There was still a chance, no matter how infinitesimally small, that things could turn around. If they succumbed to their hearts' desires, the life that Riesling and Zevulun had built would truly be broken. "Is that something you can live with?"