Eponine picked her way quietly through the woods. A soft snow had fallen the night before, blanketing the world in a thick layer of white. Even the woods and its thick trees had not escaped, every limb coated in white. The entire world, it seemed, was silent and reverent to the winter that stalked its land. No birds sang, the trees were still, and everything seemed at peace. There was beauty in the land, Eponine noted, a cleansing during the height of winter. Though all color seemed sapped from the world, and an almost uncomfortable sort of cold overwhelmed the atmosphere, this was the time and place for rebirth and renewel.
Step by step, the blue coated mare picked her way through the early morning light. Nothing had disturbed this world it seemed; her hoof prints were the first blemishes upon the newly fallen snow. Where she was headed, she had no idea. . . no destination in mind. Since the loss of her second mate, the angeni Raiju, she had felt no ties to her home. The promises he had given her had been hollow and false. While he may have thought he loved her, he had been mistaken. Eponine hadn't been surprised, but his loss had still hurt. . .
So she had taken to wandering. Her own family had scattered - Cassiel had left her in anger years ago, and though she still looked for her, the mare had hidden herself too far; her brothers were gone, living their own lives, just as her mother and father had taken time for themselves. Her world was essentially free from burden, free from close-knit ties. Though there was loss in her blue gaze, there was also maturity and wisdom.
She'd made many a mistake, but she did her best to learn from the rocky road she had walked. And so, like a shadow, the petite figure roamed the world alone. She was still a shy creature, and preferred not to make close ties anywhere. When the spirits wished her to meet a new face, she would dally, but ultimately would move on. There was too much of the world to see, too many memories to keep out running. If she stopped, she feared she might drown in sorrow. So she kept busy, and distracted herself from the shadow of abandonment.
