His trail diverged from Juniper's long ago. He wished they could travel the world, side by side, two lone souls in a picturesque wilderness that forgave them for being what they were. This is not their reality. It likely never will be.
More than once he has thought of throwing himself from a cliff, or simply disappearing, gone into the night like a shadow forgotten. It would kill him to abandon her, but it would be better, for both of them. Wouldn't it?
Why urge himself to live, only to end up alone once more?
The black bull cut through the mountains; treacherous as they were, the plains would leave him open, and he couldn't be sure yet that nobody had followed, or would follow. He had a better chance of losing anyone still trailing him. Dry blood still clung to his coat, and as he skittered down the mountainside, the lake which opened up before him cried out in his mind. Come, drink, bathe. Wash away your sorrows and be free. Rey had never been much of a swimmer (he's never gone swimming, at all), but the desire to do so was indescribable. But he did not dive headfirst. For a while, he only surveyed the area, and the waters, and the cavern mouths. If anyone was here, he would gut them before they had the chance to scream.
He was alone.
Finally.
The black stallion sunk into the water, dirt discoloring it all around his dark form. He drank - when was the last time he'd seen water? - and scraped away the blood and sand that doggedly stuck to him. All around was quiet, save for El Rey.
@Lucinda ”in blood the blade, to its golden hilt, I’ll drown,“ I pledge you now, to death they all are bound,
Lucinda lurks beneath the lake. It feels different compared to the sea and not in a good way. It had been the closest body of water in her travels so she figured it would be fine. Instead, she can now see why she prefers her home beneath the ocean. The darkness of the caves is nice, but there is not much space to stretch out. Also, there's just something about the taste.
However, it comes as somewhat of an advantage today. The man that arrives does not know she's here even as he steps into the water. He looks battered and bruised, hence all the blood that's washing away from him. She had felt some hunger pangs before, but now it's so strong, she can hardly contain it. No, she must keep her composure if she's to have any luck tonight.
She emerges slowly and gracefully. Her emerald eyes glow so brightly, it almost lights up the cavern walls around them. Lu does not boldly show her sharp teeth yet, just looks at the man with a smile on her face.
"You look like you've been through hell," she says, almost amused. It's merely an observation, but she hopes it might bring about more details of what happened to him. The idea is that he may open up about what happened, which could give a better idea of how weak and vulnerable he is. Normally she could tell from looking at someone, but with him being submerged under water, it's not that easy. Although, even if he didn't turn out to be that injured, she's always enjoyed a good challenge.
The sound of water pouring off a body sends him spinning. El Rey faces the mare, neck curled, horns prepared to wound. She’s smiling. Why is she smiling? Something about it is predatory, unnatural - he can’t quite place why her mouth looks so strange. “You look like you’ve been through hell,” she says. El Rey swallows, and relaxes his muscles a little, mostly to make a show of it for her - whatever her intentions. He glances over her form, slick and taut with muscle and armed with horns (and that’s the least of it.) She looks built for something, but he isn’t certain that it’s war.
“So I have,” he says. He edges towards the shore a little. Juniper told him of the kelpies that roam the swamps, but what of the oceans, the creeks, the stagnant lakes? He doesn’t know enough to be certain. All he knows is that something feels off. And - come to think of it - what was she doing under the water for so long? “And yourself? Hunting for -” he pauses, rethinks - “-pearls?”
There are some who can't stand when others look at them. It makes them nervous, like they are being judged. For Lucinda, she actually enjoys it. Even before becoming a kelpie, she didn't mind having gazes on her. Maybe she got used to it being a royal, but even as she matured, boys would have their eyes on her and she'd soak it all in. Girls would be green with envy while she could practically have any man crawling after her. Especially now she seems to put a spell on those she passes by, whether they find her attractive or absolutely terrifying. Perhaps she could admit that she's addicted to it.
So when this man looks at her, although she can't tell if it's from curiosity, nervousness or attraction, it just keeps her smiling. She parts her lips to show the sharp teeth beneath. She so badly wants to part her jaws and sink her teeth into his neck, but she knows she has to pace herself. Although she can't help but fantasize how lovely it would be to hear him gasping for air.
He admits that he has been through hell, but leaves out all the juicy details as to what exactly happened. Lucinda decides she doesn't care that much as his mention of hunting makes her feel like a fire has ignited inside her. The glow of her eyes becomes brighter too.
"No," she says with a laugh. Did he really see her as someone who would be hunting for pearls? "I much prefer to hunt the living." Her tone gets darker then and her eyes are much hungrier than they were before. This is the part when she waits to see if her prey will try and escape her, fight her or be frozen in fear. Based on the man's build, it's unlikely he would try and run, but some have surprised her in the past.
