Common

By the time the painted mare had broken away from the cozy little alcove in which she'd slept, the day had well and truly begun. Like a last hurrah before winter stole the warmth from the sky, the sun was bright and golden, casting bright sunshine across the world. The umber shade of her back soaked up the heat and suffused it through her body, leaving her warm and content as she sauntered just outside of the Commons, her sharp eyes focused on everything happening within.

For weeks, she'd considered her next move. For months, she'd bided her time. Now that Sephiroth and her mother were gone, Venom knew she could have simply stayed in the Thicket to welcome the handsome painted stallion that had taken over, but her pride would not allow it. He would have to work for her company, not be handed it on a silver platter.

Plus, (while this ranked considerably lower in her ultimate balance of reasons), courting him would also likely cause drama with her parents. Somehow she doubted that Sephiroth would forgive her for shacking up with the man that had deposed him, not that it really mattered. She was grown now. Well beyond the realm of needing her fake dad's approval for anything, much less of who she snuggled up to.

Her gaze was sharp as it raked across the open expanse, her heart thrumming in the bars of her chest. The future she wanted for herself was only a few steps away now, and the excitement she felt for it sat like a lump in her throat. She'd wanted this for so long now that it felt unreal for it to be so tantalizingly close. All she needed to do was to take a few steps forward, to push herself into the Commons so that her prince could find her.

For seconds, then minutes, she stood frozen. Not indecisive in the slightest, but letting the anticipation build with each passing moment, reveling in the taste. Finally, with a daintily placed foreleg, Venom broke the barrier - which in itself was really only a path that seemed to circumvent the exterior of the Commons - and pushed herself inland. She walked regally, with her elegant neck drawn into a slight arch, her mane and tail tugging lightly in the soft breeze. She knew that she was pretty, just as she knew that someone was watching.

She only aimed to give them a good show.