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The putrid smell of dead and rotting things bothered him just as it would bother any other living thing, but there was still an aura of comfort from them. This was the smell of abandonment, of forgotten things, of death itself. From an early age, he had been taught not to fear these things but embrace them. Forgotten places hid secrets, and secrets were the true weapon of anything. Revealing them could bring down kingdoms, using secrets to blackmail could end up in ruling kingdoms. One just had to not be afraid to look for and use what they could find.

With this in mind, he did not go exploring through the marshes for a aimless but leisurely stroll in the night. Like for anything he did, he had a purpose. His purpose tonight was to find the fortune teller who lived around these parts and listen in to the fortunes that the soothsayer might speak. It might not all be truth he heard, but the reactions from the other visitors were all the truth he needed. If there was a way for him to use those predictions to his advantage, then he would.

He refused to visit the teller himself though. Although he proclaimed he did not believe and that he would not fall for a witch's tricks, there was still a part of him that did fear. A healthy fear instilled by none other than a witch herself, but that was a story for another time.

His walk halted when he heard sounds coming from nearby. Had he already found the witch's hut? He could see nothing in this dark and dank place with the fog as it was. But he definitely heard something... So he remained still and listened intently as he bowed his head to make his presence less noticeable.

The stallion continued to wait and keep his head bowed low. His eyes would not help him here, not unless he lifted his head from the marshes, but, if he did that, he would surely expose himself to whomever or whatever else was out there. He felt no fear of discovery for he knew he could defend himself well, but he much preferred to stalk and lurk than confront anything.

The flick of his ears at each small noise betrayed his impatience, however. Silence. He was tempted to glance up to seek why there was only silence, but he knew better. His teacher had taught him better, even if Vortigern would rather patience go suck a prickly stick at the best of times.

Surely, there would be movement soon enough so he could go back to tracking whatever else was out here on the way to the soothsayer's hut. For now, he remained far enough away to remain hidden.

OOC;; Sorry for the delay. Thought I had already replied. -__-

More silence. Only silence. He held his breath so he didn't snort in impatience and toss his head up to see what was going on. Sure enough, the waiting paid off, and he heard the familiar sounds of muck being sloshed about before hooves hit dirt at a leisurely pace. Someone had entered the hut.

Vortigern moved as swiftly as his build would allow him to as he inched closer, careful not to disturb the overgrown weeds too much. He was not as quiet as he would have liked, but hopefully the voices and sounds within the hut would cover up the sounds he was making as he got closer in order to listen.

He got close enough to hear '...is mysterious until you get to know them...' and so on and so forth before he halted and continued to listen, wondering what all he had missed.

The rest had been interesting enough for him to keep to mind, particularly the bit about the 'dark prince'. Who better to fit that role than he?

He almost charged on up ahead to announce his presence, but he knew better than that. His patience had been restored a touch when he was listening to the soothsayer's promise, but already his impatience was rearing to go. Moving so slowly and skulking about a rat was getting on his last nerves, but he knew he could not reveal himself too quickly and risk spoiling any trust he could wriggle out of the mare.

But now, he had caught sight and scent of the mare. All he had to do was remove himself from this area so it didn't seem as if he had followed her here. With this in mind, he made his way away from the hut and the mare leaving it. Hopefully he would be able to catch her again before she left the marshes, but only time would tell. He knew her now. And he knew her prophecy. If worse came to worse, he could find her again.

By the time he exited the marshes, he had not seen her again. Had she already left? He wandered for a bit, trying to detect this while, at the same time, also attempting to shake the mud and muck from his legs from where he'd waded into the marshes. He'd have to wash this stuff off soon before it dried and clung to his coat in an uncomfortable manner, but that would have to wait until he could find a clear stream to wade into. Soon enough, he heard rustles from the marshes. The idea to rush back into the marshes himself for cover passed his mind, but this time... he was more interested in seeing the beauty for himself.



No worries! Sorry he didn't interacting directly with her earlier. Couldn't find a good place for him to appear before her without causing TOO much paranoia that wouldn't fit well with our overall plot. xD