until the lion learns how to write

There is silence here, but she knows the land is not uninhabited. Ever since she had been a young foal, raised at Vita Nova's side in lieu of her actual mother, Lakota had seen usurpers come to claim the Inlet. This land, moreso than any other land, seemed to hold old, far-reaching ties to most of the islands' family lines, and as a result, remained a prime piece of real estate that was hotly contested.

She recognized the scent of Solomon's brood here, which was unsurprising. The tobiano had been... amicable to Lakota's family during their time of exodus, but there was no denying that tensions between the Warsaw and Solomon families had grown dangerous during their shared existence in the Cove. Rumors claimed that he had later allied with Bjorn when the bearish stallion had taken the Inlet, which only fueled Lakota's general distaste for the island's most well-known manwhore.

A sudden rush of footsteps catches her attention and she orients to it with immediate defensiveness, her ashy ears tucking beneath the wisps of her mane and her body bracing for an attack that never came. The younger mare - loudly painted like the old King - drew herself up short and bared her teeth like a pup too scared to attack, but bold enough to threaten. A dismissive snort echoed out of Lakota's nares and she stared down the painted girl, her tail lashing and hooves planted.

"I see Solomon's whelps haven't gained any manners over the years, have they?" She bit out, eyes narrowed. "This place belonged to my family long before it ever did yours." She gestured to the cave with a jut of her muzzle, though it did not go far, not wanting to leave her neck unguarded. "I don't aim to take it from you," the yet she did not speak but briefly thought echoed through her mind, "so you can calm down on the whole guard pup routine. I just came to see my grandfather's bones."

It was more of an explanation than she deserved, as far as Lakota was concerned, and if she were being entirely honest with herself, she hadn't really wanted to see Warsaw's bones. Only now that someone was trying to prevent her from doing so, that was suddenly all that she wanted to do. As if to prove her lack of fear and divine right to exist here, she took a confident step toward the Cave again, her body still tensed for an attack.

young mare // Mutt // gray // 15 hh