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 Posted: Tue Jan 16, 2007 5:05 pm
 Night had fallen. In the darkness, she was near-invisible among the trees of Shrilal. This dark trunk, its wicked thorns piercing the air for several inches around, was no exception. Melantho would have it no other way: now, more than ever before, both she and Aku needed their camouflage. Until she was strong enough to fight her father's soldiers, the only options were to run or to hide. She had done too much running today. Besides, this was her tree - if she would be safe anywhere, it was most likely here.
She had never known any of her father's herd to approach this tree. Quietly she supposed that her mother must have done, even if only to protect her unborn child. Had her father protected his mate? Had he cared to? Had he ever cared for her at all?
Had he ever cared for either of them?
Memories of having her mother's death blamed upon her still hung about Melantho's mind, and she scowled at the image of her sire. The dapple grey stallion did not react, of course.
Some day he would cower before her.
A quick glance back to the hollow at the foot of the tree told her that Aku was safely in residence. Good. She had no need to wander any further tonight. And whoever was among the trees, for she was certain (was it just paranoia?) that she could hear footfalls out there in the gloom, well...let them come. She would do whatever was necessary.
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Posted: Tue Jan 16, 2007 5:35 pm
 The black of night surrounded a golden figure in a blanket of serenity. However, the waiting moon dared to disturb this balance, setting her body lightly aglow where her white mane stood out against the eerie silence like a loud noise. The mare raised her head to glare at this oval of light, and quickly darted into the trees, where the shadows were waiting. Here, the thickness of the foliage stopped the moon in its tracks, swaying bitterly to and frow as the wind gently teased at its fingertips.
Storm was following one thing, a strong voice and a strong mind that broke her sleep. Whoever it belonged to, it was harsh, and hostile, exactly the thing a seer such as herself wanted to investigate. Normally, her firm mind kept out most thoughts, but while asleep, powers could run amock, and catch even the faintest of sounds. Pictures and thoughts, but mostly hostility came from this one.
Grinning in the night, the mare shoved her mind further into the other, gathering up past experiences, and playing on the others emotions. Yes, ill had come to this youth's mind, and it was oddly playful in the golden one's heart.
She treaded softly, coming to stop only moments short of the black mare, merely watching for a time, letting the wind have its way with her mane. It seemed like such a wonderful silence to break with a bitter word, so she softened it, letting words slide of her tongue as water slipped down a greased coat.
"They don't understand do they?" she sympathized, her eyes focused unmoved on the black. Best not to let the other know she was a seer for the time. It never hurt to keep your alias secret. She knew of the Rit not to far from, but it would be smart to stay away.
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Posted: Tue Jan 16, 2007 6:23 pm
Melantho did not answer at first. All through the gilded creature's approach she had remained still and silent. What else could she have done? Even now words were lost to her, and it seemed that her limbs would not respond. Fight, flight - neither appealed. Nothing appealed very much save to stand and gaze. Her amber eyes took in the dappled coat, the elegant spire of the horn, the flowing white mane (it looked so soft!) and the gentle fading of sunlight into moonlight at the edges of the blaze, and the wings, each a perfect amalgamation of sharp spines, smooth leather, delicate feathers - this one was a chryselephantine statue, gold and ivory and twin sapphires staring back at her through the night.
...whoa.
It was impolite to stare, so she tried not to look too closely at the newcomer. Mostly she succeeded. Anyone short of a seer would have had little to no inkling of her growing weakness for this lovely mare. "...I don't care for them to," she said quietly at length. "Anyone may call me what they will: my enemies because I care nothing for them or their words, and my allies because I care for them too much to mind what name they give to me."
Silently she hoped Aku would not make any sort of smart remark or try to lighten the mood from the safety of his hollow. She liked the mood just the way it was. After all, the golden mare had not included herself in the "they" that did not understand. And why would she? She was a crossbreed - surely she had suffered some abuse for that in her lifetime, the poor soul. Melantho remembered, with a pang of regret, the fate of one mixed family that had crossed the path of her father's herd: they had barely escaped with their lives, and that only because a sudden storm had interrupted the soldiers' pursuit.
"On the subject of names," she continued in a friendly but surprisingly reserved fashion, feeling a little more at ease with the steady pull of attraction now that the initial shock had passed, "what may I call you?" And, she thought, apropos to nothing, what brings you to this godsforsaken tree? Few venture here, lady of the sun. Why you?
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Posted: Tue Jan 16, 2007 6:50 pm
Storm held patience, it was a virtue. That, and she'd received such a response by many before. Normally her harsh tones and sharp attacks quickly alleviated any hearbreak, but tonight was more a night for games, so she kept her hooves on the ground, and tongue weaving sweet sounds of seduction. Her ploy was confusing, but there were no seers about to set her straight, save for herself.
Here eyes narrowed a bit as the other spoke, as if she intended to take in the words with every bit of interest as any would liked to have focused upon them. If she had wanted, she could have delved many answers before the other spoke, but being a seer came with a price, and Storm would rather have been surprised, so she stayed out, for now, and saw nothing of the other's mind, or seeming infatuation.
They were wise and noble words, if Storm had heard any herself, coming from a rough creature. There was something haunting about the golden eyes that stared back at her, piercing through her soul. Perhaps that was what drove so many away. For her, the sight was more exhilerating than anything.
"Careful for who you care," Storm warned. "It will forever leave you in heartbreak." She kept careful distance from completely banning the matter. She herself cared, had cared and felt love from it. It was not truly a death or a leaving of a member that crushed her soul, but those who had wound her trust and then quickly snapped it, leaving her scrambling for air. It wasn't such a problem now, with these powers, but even so, there were some thoughts she couldn't reach. She was not adept as the elders once were.
"Storm," she answered simply, giving it a blunt cut at the end. It was not a pretty name, and she had no desire to make it thus, but it fit her through and through, when it came to personality and rush. Let them try and break her and she'd strike as fast as lightning. If they tried to scare her, she'd respond as loud as thunder. Granted, even she could fall victim to another's hooves, but she would do so to her death, to uphold an honor that teemed over and over in her mind.
"Is there a name that you fancy?" she questioned. In time she'd find out this one's real name, given or not, but she warned herself not to pry. Privacy, privacy. Everyone wanted it.
But even so, the violent shake of a thought directed towards her could still seep through. She frowned for a moment, and listened, her body relaxing when she realized the other had not yet discovered her secret. She'd have to tread the question lightly, without actually answering, but bringing it up all the same.
"Night and Day," her voice rose again, her lips curling into a smile. "That's what they think of you and I. Do you shatter their expectations, or is that job left to me?"
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Posted: Tue Jan 16, 2007 7:41 pm
Melantho chuckled. This mare, this Storm, was pleasing indeed. "Do not think," said she lightly, "that simply because I speak of allies I am careless with my affections. Love is a many-faceted thing, and not for me so easily confused with a flawed gemstone or a bright pebble shone by the movements of sand and sea. Aku tells me I need a love life. I tell him I have a like life, and it suits me very well."
A soft snort of Rittish laughter sounded within the hollow tree. The black mare smiled, indicating the hollow with a little toss of her head. "You see? Even now he gives me no peace. From allies I tolerate such things; from enemies, never where it can be helped. But come, Storm, let me take the first step and have a little faith. My name is Melantho - the indolent often shorten it to Mel - " Another giggle from within the trunk: she had used for this last the same tone of mock-irritation that usually amused her feline friend, though this time it was intended to assure Storm of her good intentions and put her at her ease. " - and, since I have no reason to believe ill of you, you may call me whatever you choose."
To own the truth, she was more inclined to trust a pretty mare than anyone else. Foolish, perhaps, but not an instinct she had yet learned to curb. Mind, this one was clever: she enjoyed the way the golden mare played with words and images.
"I believe "they" would be fools to use such things as night and day to denote us," she ventured boldly in answer to the poetic challenge. "To me, Storm, you are not the day. You are the Light. You are the sun and moon in perfect synergy, the gilded fire and the ivory lantern melded in union." Would I should have seen your sire and dam, for what manner of creatures must have created you! "Thus, must we not call me the Shadow in kind, the ever-present darkness cast in corners by the shining heralds of both night and day?"
And are we not destined, if the metaphor holds true, she thought, drinking in the sight of the mare and allowing herself to be lost in her visitor's sapphire gaze, to grow stronger side by side? Greater lights cast darker shadows - would I should be cast by your light and share your strength!
"This is the Shadow you have cast, Light of Eden," the black mare finished smoothly, her amber eyes set like twin fires in the canvas of the night. "Does it please you?"
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Posted: Tue Jan 16, 2007 8:05 pm
Storm nodded. Love lives, well, they were over-rated. Quite frankly, the only 'love' life she intended to persue was that in the protection and kindness of her children, certainly not of the sire which made them. He was cold and emotionless. There was no love there. None for his glorious children. The thought brought a deep furrow to her brow, though it was clear her thoughts were distanced and not directed at the mare.
"Ah. .. the Rit." Her eyes focused on that small hole, unable to make out any form. "Round balls of teeth, claw, and wit. I find them much more troublesome than any nequus." Luckily, they were far smaller and much less capable of damage. Given their brains, and slanky attitudes, however, she didn't think she'd wish to keep one as company. She wasn't sure whether it changed her opinion of Melantho any, though her subconcious was probably flickering disgust.
"Melantho," she gave it a fiery air, letting it ring off her tongue. "No. It just won't do." Her head shook from side to side, her body swaying as if in thought.
"The Light," she liked the ring to it. "Of Eden." It gave her the image of the start of this very world. A legend indeed. It was a beautiful simily, one which she feared that none could uphold, as most could not. It was why the tales were stretched and strained after death to be what they were not.
"I'm afraid, the light casts a shadow with secrets and mysteries more beautiful than itself." Her laughter broke the still silence of the night, sending neihbors ill at ease. She took a step closer to the dark mare, her breath coming out in one sharp steam and billowing up into the waiting night above.
Then, came the name, as if brought by this shadow itself, the one she had stepped into, to join the dark mare, and look off into the distance. "In Ruten, the humans say, Reya, it means shadow. It is what they call your race. But rare brilliance is Sereva, and that, shall be your name."
Her mouth twitched on its edge as if to say more. There was an ache within her soul to answer that question, the one spoke within the others mind. It was such a beautiful poem, thought with quick wit, and Storm knew, that if with any, this would be the nequus to share secrets. A wit unmatched my all, and a poetry voice that would most certainly win her heart away, regardless of the defenses she put up.
"A love life, eh?" she said with a quirked brow, her laughter ringing out once more.
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Posted: Tue Jan 16, 2007 8:39 pm
"Aku is trouble," Melantho allowed. "That's probably why I like him so well. He's always been good to me, and he understands what it is to be despised for the colour of one's coat."
"And I'm not that round!"
Melantho could not suppress the snort of laughter. No, Aku, you're not. But it's funny to hear you getting indignant about it all the same. "We had better step away a little," she said aloud, "before my lodger drives us both to distraction with his little interruptions."
She did not go far, though, never out of sight or speaking range of the golden mare. It seemed that her poetry had pleased the other: certainly Storm was making a valiant (and rather flattering) attempt to respond. "Sereva, is it?" she asked softly, trying the name and liking the sound. "Very well. I shall attempt to answer to it - do knock me if I manage not to, will you? It certainly suits the beauty you describe, whoever she may be. I think the night has clouded your eyes, golden Light, for I am no great beauty. Nonetheless I thank you for your approval: it comes so seldom nowadays, given I keep so little company."
She had to laugh along with Storm at the mention of love lives - her own history of romance was short and laughable. The last creature who had looked kindly upon her had been her intended, and she had thoroughly scared him off by shouting down her father back when she had first left the herd. "Well, it would be...an adventure, if nothing else. Nequus are not so predictable as the weather, nor so easy to check as the sea. Even those who ought to care for us most can turn upon us, and even those who ought to despise us can become our dearest friends. We can look upon allies with nothing short of disgust, though we trust them and respect their words, and yet set sight upon one who might mean to destroy us and fall...instantly in love."
It was something of a sore subject. She had been fond of Clytaemnestra once, the mighty Commandante of her father's army, and shreds of that still remained. The mixture of fear, awe and unbridled longing was difficult to control. Silently she dreaded the day she might have to face the warrior in battle: to strike Clytaemnestra was a challenge for any beast, but one who held affection for her was surely doomed to die.
At length, she shook off the moment of melancholy and picked up her previous thread. "There are those who say it is a sin to be a slave to one's heart. I cannot feel so. My "like life" is only expedient for one constantly evading pursuit and capture, but were my chance to stumble upon me some night I should not turn it away. Love is stronger than any Nequus - it is no shame, say I, to surrender. If we are willing, it can take us on journeys we never dreamed possible. And, as a wise creature once said: the real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes."
...I might as well have new eyes tonight, Lux Aeterna, as the old tongue says, Light Eternal - for in setting them upon you, they seem for the first time to have opened, taken in the world, and wondered.
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Posted: Tue Jan 16, 2007 9:06 pm
She followed the other without a word, thankful to be out of the Rit's presence, for he irritated her without ever being. She nodded her respect to the other, people typically liked what she had to say, just not how she delivered it.
"Beauty is not always in color," Storm grinned, but left the meaning for the others determination. With such a poetic mind, she found it irresistable to soak up what little direct thoughts this young black woman delivered.
"I rarely fall instantly in love," came the bittered reply. Her voice had fallen short of beauty now, taking up the tone she had with most others. Those who threatened her existence and her children. "It is a gift, and . . . a curse." Her eyes flashed. Because I know too well what drifts in others minds.
It was sometimes a horrifying thing, to glimpse another's thoughts, and Sereva shouted them so very loud. But above all, she normally spoke everything that was in her head and heart, and left little for a seer to pick up. This Clytaemnestra intrigued her. A powerful mare, whom even she had a want to avoid at the greatest of costs. Though she only relied on the imagery of another's mind, which could be tampered well out of shape.
But, as any seer, she could refrain from telling the other no longer. "Well new eyes you have, and have yet to experience." Storm herself dampered more on the art of riddles than poetry. Melantho- Sereva was certainly a completion of this other half she was so dubtifully lacking. A small expiriment wouldn't be thrust away, Storm thought.
Focusing her mind lightly, she picked through thoughts and times, focusing on the darkness, anything. She let it be her, the earth around her, and then searched for that familiar presence of one nearby. She tried to become a part of that black horse, let her feel in her shoes for a moment, and at the last second, she let it go. It was as if they'd switched bodies, for their eyesight had become one, but the mind still took the movement to their original soul.
She motioned herself to look upon Melantho, every bit of her, but it was through her vision. The mare before her stood black and tall, proud, and muscular. The very dream of any stallion in proportion. Only her black skin would be daunting, but in Storm's eye it was nothing different, for her vision was a blur of color and emotion. The sight of a seer. What Melantho herself saw, shocked the seer into silence. Never before had she tried to look through another's eyes.
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Posted: Wed Jan 17, 2007 6:10 am
The sudden change of perspective caught Melantho completely off guard, and she froze to the spot with a shocked gasp. It was as if...as if...she was suddenly both of them. While Storm still stood before her in all her chryselephantine glory, while the moonlight still picked her out as clearly as before, she could see another face, a dark face, staring at her in amazement. She blinked, and, in strange yet somehow utterly comprehensible swirls of coloured thought, watched the black mare do the same.
The first clear, coherent thought that struck her was this: for all their multitude of differences, the shocked expressions on the black and golden-white faces were almost identical.
Once the initial startlement had died down, she began to cautiously explore the double-vision that Storm (for who else could it be?) had granted her. Perhaps if she turned her head - she could see herself from the side. Or Storm could. Or they could. What was Storm seeing? The same as her? And how had she done it? What magic was this?
...Oh.
...you're a Seer, aren't you?
If her guess was correct, Storm would be able to hear her. Seers could hear the thoughts of others as clearly as they heard their voices. ...gods, did Storm know? Had she caught a glimpse of those first moments of admiration? ...Probably. That placed her at a considerable disadvantage. Somehow she was a little too preoccupied to care.
Is this...is this really how you see me?
Because she was rapidly realising, gazing out through Storm's borrowed eyes, that she looked...beautiful.
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Posted: Wed Jan 17, 2007 5:46 pm
Storm could feel her inward body laughing at the sight which plagued the black. She herself found it disturbing, for it was not a power she brought about often. It was an invigorating feel, but one of fear all the same. To see through another's eyes was not something most wanted. Their own safely knitted cacoons were enough for them.
Storm's gaze flickered for a moment as her concentration began to break. It was hard to hold and yet answer questions in the same very moment. She waited just a time longer, then released it all, feeling her mind come shuddering back into her own body with alarming speed. The mental reinstatement caused her physical self to stumble back a few feet, but the shock was only momentary.
"Yes," she said, breaking the word thoughts. She had never been so very fond of talking in the mind. She still held ties to the voice of nature. Still, her conscious mind was always taking in everything that Melantho said. She was still able to hear and transfer (sometimes see) every whisper the black mare told.
"It is," Storm answered simply once more. While riddles had been appropriate before, now was not such a case. There was enough confusion in the mind, and she needn't tie it up further with tongue.
But, as in every night, and with ever person, Storm's stays were short like whirlwind. She had a legacy to uphold, while others did not. The longer she kept her appearance, the more imperfections shined through. She couldn't have that, certainly not from one that saw her in such a vivid way. "They say I have unique taste." She winked lightly at the Reya, and then started her walk forwards into the forest, turning back once to give the mare one critical gaze over, perhaps to mark an extra bit of awe.
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Posted: Sat Jan 20, 2007 5:37 am
As the sight faded, Melantho breathed out: exhilarating though it had been to mark the world as a Seer might mark it, and to look herself in the eye whilst doing so, it was strange. Strange and a little frightening. She gently shook the remaining shivers away, not wishing to dislodge the sense of wonder that still hung about her in shimmering swathes.
...ah. And now Storm was teasing her. Only lightly, but teasing her nonetheless - flirting, leading her on. And going. A shame. She would have liked to speak with her longer, perhaps have some chance to see with those eyes again. Melantho smiled inwardly, the warmth of her attraction to the mare already becoming familiar and comforting. Regretful though she was, two could play at this last little game.
"Not entirely unique," she called to the departing object of her affections, her voice playful, but knowing. She had a feeling that this chance meeting was only the beginning. "You and I, Storm, Lux Aeterna, we are not so different in the end..."
As the golden mare vanished among the trees, she sighed to herself. "All right, Aku," she said, wandering back towards her birthplace. "You can come out now."
A soft snort - "...finally..." - and the Rit emerged, gingerly, from the hollow at the base of the tree. He was grinning. "I thought you two lovebirds were going to be chattering all night."
Melantho grinned back. "We're not lovebirds, you little horror," she returned, chuckling. "We only just met. ...And then she buggered off, much to my disgust. I can't understand why, though, that's the thing: if I liked someone - and I'm certain she liked me, she shared her Seer-sight with me - I'd want to stay and talk longer. Do you think she was headed somewhere? Or being chased, like us?"
The Rit sniffed, approaching to rub his cheek against her forelegs. "Mm. Maybe. I reckon it's got much to do with the mystery effect as well, though, if she did have another reason for going so soon."
Gently, Melantho nudged his head with her nose. "...Mystery effect?"
"Yeah. It seemed like she wanted to be mysterious - like she didn't want you to know her. Not really well, anyway."
"Why not? I made it clear I liked her, didn't I?"
"No, you made it clear you liked what she showed of herself. Big difference." At the black's puzzled look, he appeared to realise that elaboration was necessary. "She's a Seer, Mel. She's got a lot of power. Over time it'll have become like a coat to her, a second skin. I don't think she wants people to see through that skin. She knows she's good on the outside; the mask and the lines are perfect. She's got the kind of exterior anyone would want to show off. But - and this is just a theory - maybe the person inside, the one you see when you pull back the curtain, see through the mist and the glamour...maybe she doesn't think that person is good enough to show around."
Melantho's heart sank. She knew she could never live like that, pretending one thing and feeling another, wearing a face that was not truly hers. "Everyone should be able to have faith in their true selves," she said firmly. "Everyone should have someone to love them as they are, complete. ...Perhaps I can get that across to her some day."
One little black paw was held up. "Whoa there. Think about this carefully before you decide to go looking for the real Storm - if I'm even right about her - "
The mare's gaze was level and sure. "And if I already have?" she offered, perhaps not realising the enormity of the task to which she was committing herself.
"Ooh, you can't be sure you'll like what you find, babe," the Rit warned, though some of the weight of the sentence was removed by his conspiratorial grin.
Staring into the trees, perhaps hoping to catch a glimpse of gold and ivory, Melantho could not seem to fear that prospect.
"If you're right, Aku..." she said slowly, carefully, "I think she's afraid enough of that for the both of us."
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