she was powerful not because she wasn't scared,
but because she went on strongly despite her fear.
Before the astringent blasts came to breathe their world anew, before the snow accumulated to force their familiar paths to a stark canvas, she observed each sculpted flake with eyes at ease, the turbulent dance of billions languidly welding over the earth.
She'd been hushed for so long.
There was challenge in growing accustomed to a new place. When she'd left Varak, everything she knew had fragmented into shards that could not be repaired. Familiarity had become something foreign and all that she grasped and understood were memories of a country she could not retreat to. In Novus, she had grown pale, bewildered, but this was not who she was at her core. Her opinion, her voice, they'd been silenced by the lack of understanding, but the veil had started to lift, the mystery began to dissipate.
For the first time in a long time, the silver-haired woman felt wholly herself.
And the scene was a hearth-fire to it, bringing the hint of a newborn smile, one that lifted the spirit onto the wind with a bohemian blossom. That which rested in the easy summer days had now awoken; the wintry frost, delphinium in cast, reflected only the nascent drive Maerys had hidden for so many seasons. There was energy in this awakening, in this remembrance of who she was, and as if she could not bear it any longer, she began to move - to race past ridges and ranges and through adumbration and illuminations just the same.
As those eyes, spirited and awake, lift to the heavens - to the shifting wintry sky - the snowflakes hit her cheeks just the same as they did the earth.
She wasn’t merely running with the snowflakes; she was gliding as they did.
It's innocent and pure like a child's heart. It's laughter on the tip of her tongue and a light shining in her eyes. Corr feels it deep inside her and it spreads and spreads like a glow of a warm fire. She smiles as her wings glide through the air and she does a spin. Hāsta tries to keep up beside her, but is failing. The witch is too fast for the crow.
Around them the snow is falling and swirling in the air. She sticks out her tongue and catches a few small flakes that melt instantly in her mouth. Her wings take her over the pine forest and she begins to glide lower. As she passes the trees, there is another gliding through the snow, but in a swift gallop. Their pale coat helps them blend in with the winterscape and it makes Corr have to blink a few times. There is excitement again as she flies toward the stranger, feeling eager to keep up. She beats her dark gray wings faster and faster until she comes up beside the mare. There is a playful expression on Corr's face as she tips her head to the side.
"Care to race?" she asks, her smile turning to a smirk at the mention of a fun challenge. Corr is still flying, but is closer to the ground now so she can more easily talk to the stranger. But she doesn't glide low for long. In hopes that the challenge is accepted, she picks up her speed again and flies onward to where the snow meets the ocean. Hāsta, who at this point had still been trying to keep up, takes perch in a nearby pine tree to catch her breath. The crow figures she can catch up with them later. A race isn't what she had in mind when she agreed to come to the island with Corr.
No matter, the dappled mare goes on without her for now. All she can focus on is the snow kissing her cheeks and the wind going through her hair as she flies. Maybe, the woman is following and will leave her in the dust soon enough.
she was powerful not because she wasn't scared,
but because she went on strongly despite her fear.
Corrdelia was a bird in the sky, her body composed of storm clouds and rain. Maerys had always known it would be a great joy to fly in the sky, powerful and freeing; flying looked much like that stranger now as it did in Maerys' rosy imagination of it - hilarity and delight.
Giggling, like a little girl, was that mare. It was nothing but contagious, hurling itself through the draft and poisoning Maerys who laughed much like the princess she was born to be. It was a sumptuous sound, sonorous and luscious, blending into the tempest and the pegasus' titters. Even the birds would halt to observe the couple, one ochroid and one steel, move like lightning across the land with those sounds emanating from their throats as the wind beat their faces and the snowflakes kissed their flesh.
Care to race?
She contributed an eager nod in response and that was it before they both took off full speed ahead, one soaring and one running.
And, oh, running she did. Her hooves hammered into the ground, striking snow and rock alike. She traversed the jagged terrain with tremendous paces, her diminutive frame extending each limb as far as it would go, suggesting that perhaps she was not made of sinew and joints, but coiled springs instead.
Some time ago, Maerys would have balked at the idea of running so far and fast with no destination in mind, but now she relished in it. Those hooves, unyielding and resolute, were made to travel with the ferocity of a lion. Breathing patterned, heart sound - she'd been born to run.
Yet Corrdelia had been born to fly and when Maerys pulled up at the end of their race, she was not sure who had gotten their first.
From beyond her syrupy smile and solid breaths cut the words "I like you, stranger." Not many would drop their worries and play as they had. Their world was so complicated and difficult - titans, laws, murders, sacrifices, betrayal, angst, love, hate, despair - it was a relief to be as free as they were now.
To her delight, the woman takes up the challenge and she can feel the joy blooming again. Their aura is a vibrant shade of pink that she only sees for a moment before her magic fades in and out. Even without the aura being more clear, she can see it in her expression and it's like the two are young foals again. The race is a game and her heart beats faster and faster with each flap of her wings.
When they reach the shore, their speed is about equal and it seems to be a tie. Corr doesn't mind as she's never been the competitive type; just doing the race alone is fun in itself. She lands next to the mare who is smiling and comments that she likes Corr. The feeling is certainly mutual as not many would so quickly agree to such a childlike game.
"Maerys, likewise! Thank you for a fun run. I have to say, you're pretty speedy," Corr replies with a chuckle, tucking her wings neatly by her side. She bows in greeting. "Corrdelia Maude, crow witch and resident psychic of Terrastella." Her usual intro, as long-winded as it is.
"Where are you from, Maerys? What brings you out to this wintery island?" she asks, tilting her head. Maybe the woman has no purpose and is merely exploring like Corr is. Either way, she loves learning about others and their homelands. Maerys does not look familiar enough to be from Dusk, so she's curious if she belongs to a different Court, or maybe no Court at all.
Just as she looks up at the sky, a light snow begins to fall down. "Perhaps you came for the snowflakes with that hint of fresh ocean air?" She sticks out her tongue to catch some of the snowflakes and they immediately melt in her mouth. "I have to say, they oddly taste better than snowflakes back home." Corr very much is a kid at heart and nothing could ever change that about her.
![[Image: maerys-pixel.png]](https://i.ibb.co/kM48w8r/maerys-pixel.png){kind=tracking}
