Welcome to Gaia! ::

Crisp autumn air nipped at a lone mare's flanks, but she hardly noticed it. Born and raised in the mountains, it took much more than a lowland breeze to chill her. Still, it was invigorating, especially after the long, hot summer months. Wanderer she may be, but used to the heat she was not. After the summer she had just experienced, Senka was beginning to suspect that she never would be. But that was in the past, now, and she had the rest of autumn and a nice, chilly winter to look forward to.

So, it was with a bit of a prance in her step that she scanned the hills for any sign of life. Surely there was someone else out here with whom she could walk for a while. Really, where was the fun in life if one spent all their time alone?

Her ruby eyes lit upon the distant figure - Azrein from the look of it - and she changed direction so her path would meet his. As she drew closer, she saw that it was a black stallion. As more details resolved, she discovered that he was a handsome creature, indeed. Not that that necessarily meant anything. For all she knew, he could be insufferable or worse: dull. Of course, she would never know until she tried.

"Good morning," she said when she was close enough to be heard without shouting.

((Plot twist? Do tell.))

Not a very forthcoming one, the mare noted with amusement. However, he had been polite enough to reply, at least, so that was a start. As she drew apace with him, Senka got a good look at his eyes - a brilliant blue - and was stricken by a strange sense of familiarity. It was curious, as she was certain she had never met him before, but she brushed it aside as inconsequential.

"A pleasant day for travel," she observed innocuously enough. "May I ask if you live in these parts?"

"As am I," she replied. "Have been for a while, now." There were certain things to be said for life in the mountains, but the truth was, she had never truly felt at home with her herd. It was far too secluded for her taste and the azrein were so set in their ways. Senka craved new things or, more accurately, she wanted to learn everything she could. She was a storyteller: a seeker of knowledge and a conveyer of wisdom.

All things considered, she could hardly be blamed for her next question, direct and graceless though it was. Perhaps she would normally have worked up to it, but the urge struck and who was she to deny her whims?

"Tell me. What is your tale?"

The mare made a soft sound of amusement. Was he so worried about courtesy? Well, it was only reasonable, she supposed. Who wanted to speak freely around a complete stranger? Then again, she had had entire conversations without ever exchanging names with the other party. Shooing such thoughts away, she focused on the present once more.

"Of course. Where are my manners. My name is Senka, and you are?"

Her entire body stilled to the point that she appeared to be no more than a statue. All traces of good humor vanished and in their place was the empty numbness of shock.

"No." The whispered denial was barely audible, but it seemed to take the edge off of her shock. Instead, she felt a growing fury and a distant, painful stab of longing. Her brother was dead, just like her mother and father and all of her other siblings. They had to be. Or else she would have found them. She would have sought them out.

"No," she said again, more forcefully. "You lie!"

Senka's ears flattened. He knew her story. How could he have learned it if it was not his, as well. Yet she did not want to accept it. Accepting it as truth meant that she had truly abandoned her kin. That she had dismissed them without finding out the truth for herself. It did not matter that she had been nothing more than a child at the time. It would mean that she had abandoned her siblings, and nothing could excuse that. Memories of that day came unbidden to her mind. Memories of bloodshed and terror.

"I got lost," she said mostly to herself. "And the herd found me and looked for you, but they said everyone was dead."

She had not seen her mother's body with her own eyes. She had not seen her siblings, either. Had the herd known about them? Known to look for them? What if they had not known? What if they though she was an only child? What if it was true, and her siblings were not dead, but stolen?

"...Haides?"

Most of the time, it was so easy to let everything slide off her back. There was no point in worrying about the future or fretting over what had already passed. However, there were a few things that Senka took very seriously. The first was her storytelling. It was her art, her soul, the thing that had saved her when nothing else could. It defined her and she honored it above all else.

The second was family. It had been a very long time since she had believed there were any blood relations remaining, but there was more than one type of family and she held herself responsible for them. If she could not protect her important people, then what use was she? But this? This was even worse. She had not even tried.

She flinched slightly as he answered. Was he real? Was he truly her brother? Tentatively, she took a step toward him, then another, until she could reach out and nose his cheek. She found flesh and blood and a scent tantalizingly familiar. He smelled almost like their father had.

Suddenly, her head dropped to lean against his chest. "I'm sorry."