The Peak Minister is not surprised when Clarity’s call for her resounds off the snow-covered peaks. Twin flutes snap to attention amid the tangled web of her obsidian mane as Khar’pern lifts her head from the patch of lichen she had been grazing on. Silvery eyes cloud as the weight of that call echoes through every fiber of her being. This… this was a long time coming.

Discord has never been high on her list of things to resolve. For the most part, the rose-colored mare has always been an act-first, think-later type of mare. A boon and a curse rolled into one, especially with the weight of the Minister upon her shoulders. That had never been a problem… until Khyber came into her life.

Like stilts of stone, the lithe mare forces herself to move in response to the black and white mare’s voice. Despite the turmoil that roils within her, Khar holds her head high, her chin lifted in authority. Regardless of what would come from this, she would not shrink away in fear or bend her knee in submission. She would answer for her mistakes and listen to the wisdom the elder mare had to offer.

Even with the distance between them, Khar’pern can feel the ice in Clarity’s gaze as she crests the hillock and moves to stand stiff-leggedly alongside the painted General. Dark lashes blink slowly over crystalline eyes as a heavy sigh escapes her paper-thin nostrils. Twin flutes twitch atop her skullcap as the dawn-colored mare casts her gaze over the lower slopes that stretch below them. Even from this distance, it is easy to pick out Karlach’s splotched form as she danced and frolicked around the meadow chasing after what Khar can only imagine is yet another unsuspecting meadow lark or unfortunate butterfly. The sight brings the smallest of gentle smiles to the mother’s lips and reawakens the ache in her soul at the memory of Solas. It had not been so long ago that the boy, too, had been much like the sister he had not met. She can only hope that he has found his footing in the Lagoon and that Khyber is watching over him. A faith that she never imagined she would be beholden to a stallion, much less a bachelor like Khyber.

Khyber.

The thought of his handsome face stirs something inside her as she draws her gaze away from the serene scene below to meet Clarity’s azure eyes. ”Say it.” She murmurs, her voice a soft whisper, barely audible above the stiff breeze that twists and twines itself around them.

Khar'pern

The jungle is dark but full of diamonds;