She is not alone in watching the deer.

Asterion has always been conscious of the other creatures that share their world, and these are no exception. The bay admires their fine bones, their dark eyes large and soft, the grace in each step. He is glad to see them, colored rosy in the dawn, pleased to see how healthy they are after a long summer and the first mild weeks of fall.

(His appreciation for the other animals of Novus was only heightened, recently, with the arrival of his bonded. The seagull drifts far above him now, idling on the updrafts, a bright speck in the morning sky).

It is a different pale figure that catches his gaze then, and the Regent forgets the deer in favor of the stranger. She is as graceful as they, but makes him far more curious.

The deer watch him warily as he crosses to her, though they do not run; it seems the whole of Novus knows how unthreatening the bay stallion is. They only flash their white tails at him and go back to browsing and grazing, while he stops a few lengths from the stranger.

“Hello,” he greets her softly, then angles his muzzle toward her satchel and the sweet-dark scent of berries. “Did you find those near here? It’s been a while since I went foraging, but this is the best time for it.”


@Felwood hello! Hope you don’t mind an asterion ☺

if you'll be my star*

He is unprepared for the brightness of her eyes when they settle on him. They are molten gold and piercing where his are the darkness between stars, and he is almost glad for an excuse to look away as he waits for her to finish chewing.

That’s good to know,” he answers with a smile, and follows the tilt of her muzzle with his gaze. I may have to spread the word when I return to the citadel.” Florentine, surely, would want to go berry-picking; the thought of her bright gold among the brambles is enough to summon his smile.

At her offer the bay’s gaze shifts back to her, the smile lingering. Mentally he tries to place her among all the new faces of Dusk, but he comes up empty. And surely he would remember such a girl, with her skin like smoke and her sun-bright eyes.

No thank you, though I appreciate the offer.” He can imagine his companion’s response to turning down food – the seagull would clack her beak at him, and accept the offer on his behalf. But for the moment, she still soared far above, welcoming the dawn.

“Are you passing through Terrastella? I’ve been busy of late, but I at least try to recognize our citizens.” The Regent’s smile turns apologetic, and he wonders whether he should be questing so much for information –

but these were strange times in Novus, with the gods stirring to life, and it was best to be both cautious and kind.



@Felwood

if you'll be my star*

He is reassured by the smile that turns up the dark corners of her mouth; he is even more so when she admits her newness. Months ago, before Florentine appointed him to Regent, the bay had often greeted recent arrivals to Dusk Court. Now his time is often too occupied by meetings and tasks, but he misses his old freedom. He always liked to watch strangers see Terrastella for the first time – and he thinks the countryside shows itself particularly well in autumn.

It is strange to feel something like pride for a place, as if he’d had any hand in its making – but then, after so long spent wandering, home is still a feeling that manages to surprise him.

“Even better,” he says, “as that means I get to welcome you.” His smile is still a soft thing, like a cloud-shadow passing over the grass, and it grows softer yet when he follows her golden gaze back to the deer. For a quiet moment there is nothing but the whisper of their hooves on the grass as they fade into the last of the morning mist.

But at the sound of her name his attention returns and he dips his head in greeting, a dark-rimmed ear twisting toward her. “Well met, Felwood. I am Asterion. Does anything particular bring you to Dusk?” His smile turns teasing. “Other than the superiority of our berries, of course.”



@Felwood :)

if you'll be my star*

A fresh start…a new adventure.

Asterion falls to stillness beneath the words, for oh, he knows them well. The same reasons had drawn him from his home along the sea-shore years ago with stars in his eyes and dreams in his head. Adventure, that siren-call that pulled so many – the bay hopes she has better luck than he.

He has not yet had his fill of adventures, but there have been just as many little heartaches along the way.

“You’re sure to find one here,” he says after a pause, watching as she steps forward. His smile deepens at her wink, and with a nod he moves beside her, the dew a cool kiss against his dark legs.

He is about to say something more as they pass below the kaleidoscope sky, but Asterion is interrupted by a swoop of white, a rustle of feathers.

With a rough call the big gull circles the pair once before settling on the stallion’s rump, flapping her wide wings then tucking them tight. She cocks a dark eye on his new companion and Asterion flicks his tail at the bird, pausing for her webbed feet to find their balance before continuing on.

His glance at the gray mare then is a careful, weighing thing; he is still new to having a companion, the strange bond they share, and always wonders what others must think of it. Knowing his thoughts, the gull tugs at a strand of silver in his tail, a loving reprimand. “Felwood, this is Cirrus. She’s a new friend of mine. I’m glad you have a satchel to protect your breakfast – her manners are not what mine are,” he says, and laughs as the bird gives an indignant flap of wings. You wound me, the bird thinks, but Asterion only grins over his shoulder at her in return.

When his gaze returns to Felwood, it is a quieter thing, but still curious. “What kind of adventures do you seek?”




@Felwood so much for closing xD might wrap up on the next round. she's lovely!

if you'll be my star*

At the moon-colored mare’s greeting to the gull – perhaps the most earnest of any to come across her yet – Asterion couldn’t help but grin, and he angles nearer to Felwood so that the bird can stretch out a wide wing, her dark feather-tips brushing the mare’s shoulder soft as a whisper.

Her words, though, make the bay stallion laugh. “A kindness you may regret in time,” he says, though there is no malice in his words. The first few days had been strange ones, but now he and the Pallas’ gull were as close as a cloud and its shadow.

The Regent relaxes into the brief silence, content as she considers to simply take in the morning. Here at the cusp of fall the leaves were just beginning to turn, the air was starting to promise something cooler. It is startling to think he has now been here for more than a year.

A dark ear flicks toward her when she speaks again, and Asterion’s gaze follows, his own expression faded into a softer kind of smile. “Wisely spoken,” he tells her. “I think you would enjoy meeting my sister, Florentine – she shares your philosophy. If we’re lucky and you’re willing, she may still be at court.”

He is content to walk beside her, wherever her feet draw her – but he would be just as glad to lead her to the city, with its towers rising smoothly up into the dawn.  





@Felwood gonna wrap it here for him - it was a pleasure to write with you, and I look forward to seeing her around (and threading again soon :) )

if you'll be my star*