Common

They stood together until the waves of grief receded, sharing soft words once their heads had broken the surface. Words that neither would remember if asked even moments later. The importance was not in their contents, but in their presence. Those murmurs carried all the comfort of a mother’s embrace; all the certainty of a parent soothing a frightened child. Everything will be okay, they said. And Rook believed it. She believed it with all of her fierce heart, even through the cracks that had formed.

Jester envied her for her hope and her resilience.

They shared a last moment before breaking apart, their bodies nestled together like two pieces of the same whole. As usual, it was the stallion who drew away first, softening the moment with a smile and a gentle breath that might have preceded one of his characteristic quips. But whatever he meant to say died there on his lips, which quivered as the scent of a stallion reached both. His head swung around, the dark half of his face turning toward the large black creature who approached. His brown eye was alight with curiosity, but also wary.

Would you like aid?

Jester felt some of the tension bleed from his pale-and-dark skin, his expression reflective. They must look every bit like the refugees they were, for a stranger to approach and make such an offer. It stung him a little bit. That he - who had once stood so high - had now sunk to the lowest of lows. An outsider. An individual whose future might well depend on the charity of strangers like this stallion. So naturally, a joke was the first thing to come to his lips.

“And here I thought we were doing well at fitting in,” he said, his lips curling up in a half-smile. “I take it seaweed ribbons and salt-crusted coats are not the fashion of this place, then?”

“Brother,” Rook said chidingly, finally stepping forward to stand at his side. Jester had felt the play of her emotions through her stillness and silence. She was concerned for him - or more accurately, for the way his speech often preceded his thoughts. But had she been left to speak for them both, they might be standing here until the sun set and rose again. Rook was too careful, too contemplative.

Good thing she had him to tug her out of her comfort zone, whether she wished it or not.

“My sister means to scold me for my lack of courtesy,” the smoky cream continued, pointedly ignoring the mare’s irritated stares. “But I prefer to fill the silence, where she would think her way through this conversation like it’s an especially difficult puzzle.” His head tilted briefly in a sort of shrug, his lips pressing together hard to prevent the laughter that might’ve escaped at Rook’s fierce glare.

“I am called Jester, by the way,” the ivory twin offered with a gently-mocking bow. “And my verbally constipated companion is my little sister-”

“Big sister,” she burst out, her ears pinning briefly. “And I can speak for myself, Fool. In fact, I meant to ask our new friend what sort of aid he is offering - and whether we might be expected to pay it back in kind.”

Her expression had turned mulish with a combination of aggravation and concern. Jester took one look at her and finally laughed, the sound ringing unnaturally loud in the relative silence of the open field.

“Little sister,” he countered, emphasizing the words by standing at his full height. “But she has you there, at least, Stranger. How might you help us, if we were to accept your offer? And does that offer come with a cost? I’m afraid I’m fresh out of souls, but perhaps another price might do.”

He smiled his crooked smile - the pale side of his lips pulling upward while the dark side remained straight.

Rook only frowned, her eyes beseeching him to - please - be quiet before he talked them into the sort of trouble he was always managing to find.

JESTER & ROOK
this is not where our story ends