he hassles on his scarves swayed in the sea breeze, brushing against his chest with every step. It felt nice, to walk on solid ground again—to feel the sand give way under hoof, the waves lapping gently at his ankles while spray from the ocean freckled his coat.

The water was cold, raising goosebumps on his skin. As it washed over his body, Tuomas could feel his mind beginning to clear and settle, leaving only an icy clarity in its wake. It was refreshing.

The palomino paused, green eyes slipping shut as he inhaled deeply. He could almost swear that he still felt the ship rocking beneath him, the boards creaking beneath his weight. Whenever he stopped, it was as if the entire world was balancing on the waves of the ocean. It had been a long month at sea.

He took a minute to prod around the base of his horns with his telekinesis, testing it gently. Both sets stayed perfectly in place, the mixture of tree sap and various glues he’d used doing their job well. He rearranged his forelock to cover it perfectly—wishing he had a mirror on hand to double check his handiwork—before he started back down the beach once more. Tuomas’ entrance to Novus had to be perfect, after all.

After a few minutes of walking, a figure in the distance caught the palomino’s eyes.

His ears perked forward, his stride subconsciously picking up the pace to bring him closer, faster, until he was trotting neatly down the beach. The nearer he came, the better he could see the dun-and-white-splashed mare, wandering down the shoreline nearly as aimlessly as he.

“Hello!” he called over the sound of the waves, slipping into his brother’s voice: it was confident, bold, self-assured. Everything Tuomas himself often was not. “Lovely day for a walk, isn’t it?”

He was walking again now, approaching her slowly. He faked a smile, the grin turning his lips upwards with practiced ease. “The water’s a bit too cold to swim in though—trust me, I tried.”


@valkyr  ahh I hope you don’t mind! still trying to get a feel for tuomas c:
"talking." acting.

he entire time he’s approaching, he’s watching her through seafood eyes that rage like the ocean.

And when she looks up from her musings so that his gaze can meet his, they try to burn into her, full of hurricane force intensity. But then he smiles, baring his teeth in a nearly feral manner, and it takes the edge from his eyes nearly as quickly as it had appeared.

There’s an accent in her voice, and Tuomas’ ears prick forward in interest. He had been expecting to meet a native of Novus, but instead he was met with northern and rugged. But he wouldn't complain; what was another face to add to his collection? Another name, another personality? People were collectables, and even when the serpent was looking for a specific apple to bite into, he could never pass up the opportunity to gather another forbidden fruit.

“Your old home?” he responds loosely, hiding his burning curiosity with what might sound like an air of indifference. “It sounds cold. Is that why you’ve come here instead, to be warm?” Or was it some other reason? He would kill to know. 

“I’m Toulouse.” The lie comes easy, as naturally as if he had spoken his own name—and for all intents and purposes, he might as well have. 


@valkyr   clearly it's supposed to be seafoam not seafood bc of autocorrect
but it's too iconic to change now. c'x
"talking." acting.

ven if she wasn’t exactly the type he’d been hoping to find first, Tuomas found himself still enjoying her company. ’And her information, of course.’

“And what do you call it? Also the North?” A humorous smile split through his face, pulling his lips away from bone-white teeth. He had heard of other lands out here, of course; but somehow, Novus had always seemed to be a stand-alone tale, never connected with any other places. As if trapped in its own private fairytale, oblivious to the going-ons of a hundred different continents. It had taken him months to finally hear of its name, and longer still to learn how to find it—but never had he heard of a place simply dubbed “The North.”

It intrigued him. Perhaps another story for another time, or another world to adventure when he grew bored of this one.

“Funny how fate turns out that way sometimes,” he mused aloud, turning his gaze away from her to look out across the ocean. It rolled and toiled and roared without any care for the conversation happening on its shores; pulling and pushing in an endless rhythm. The ocean moved for no one, but demanded the world be moved for it—or would drown them in its wake. He supposed life as a whole might be like that: either you changed and took the punches in stride, or you were left behind and forgotten. Or dead.

But she was still talking. He kept an ear tilted towards her, an indication of his listening, while his eyes continued their slow sweep across the waves.

“Winter, all year. I suspect there may be a revolt if that were to happen.” He shook his head slowly. “I wouldn’t mind keeping this weather, myself.”

His name—or rather, his brother’s—sounded strange and foreign in her rough accent. As if the syllables were far too soft for her to enunciate. “It’s nice to meet you, Valkyr.”

His gaze continued to rove, wandering from the water to the shore, then down along the beach and back.

“Novus must be a pretty special place then, for you to have come back.”



@valkyr  
"talking." acting.

t was honestly amazing, how easily the golden serpent could become bored. ’It’s as if I’m becoming Toulouse in nature as well as appearance,’ he mused silently to himself, his eyes politely trained on the paint.

“Brynjar,” he sounded out the syllables, trying out the name. ’I’ve never heard of that one, either.’ “Your father’s home… but not your own?” His question was innocent enough, but leading. He wondered if she would take the bait.

He gave an easy shrug in response. “Everyone likes what they’re used to. But life isn’t near interesting enough if you can never get used to something different.” Tuomas dipped his head so that his hair fell neatly down his neck again, obscuring his forehead and crest from view beneath the thick curls.

“A noble enough reason for the voyage, I suppose. Perhaps the sticky weather will be the easiest thing to get used to,” he suggested, watching her eyes curiously. “It sounds like there may be a good deal more differences between the North and Novus than just the weather.” ’And not everyone has it in them to change, to adapt,’ he thought to herself, but this thought he kept to himself as his gaze followed hers back out to the waves. He wasn’t here to step on anyone’s toes… just for some information.

Of course, he was never as prepared to share information as he was to learn it.

His head snapped to attention, regarding her carefully. Thankfully, she had unknowingly given him a way out… and ever the actor, Tuomas allowed a guilty smile to come onto his lips and into his eyes, ever so slowly.

“You caught me,” he allowed, punctuating his admission with a laugh. “The stories have been a bit of a siren call for me.” ’Wouldn’t you like to know which?’

“But on second thought... I'm trying to find this "new start" everyone has been speaking of,” he eyed her carefully, before turning and beginning to head along the beach, in the direction of the Court.

"I'll see you around?" he threw back over his shoulder as he left her. But was it a question - or a promise?





@valkyr  
edited to include his exit!
"talking." acting.