It was a long, treacherous path to the peak of Veneror, where Reichenbach placed his small bundle of sacrifices once a month. He knew the path well, though it changed almost as constantly as the weather - knew where to place his neat, hard hooves and where not to place his weight. He was so used to the chill of the mountain by now that he had almost stopped feeling the cold - almost. Not tonight. He'd settled in one of the little granite nooks of the mountain, shielded carefully from the wild winds that had been known to whisk horses away into nothingness. His camp was small and simple, pressed against the mountain behind him even as a merry fire crackled before him. Veneror Peak was one of the hardest places to get a fire going - he'd figured as much as a teen, angry and shivering while clutching his small bundle of alpine forget-me-nots and a bunch of honey soaked bluestems, his gifts to Calligo.
The memory curled like smoke within him, bringing a small, amused smile to grace his velveteen lips. He had had to learn too much too quickly as a child, a rushed education on life and how to survive and yet... he felt almost thankful for that experience. It had brought him this serenity, this purpose. The stars above him twinkled distantly, the night sky burning with cold and distance as he watched them mindlessly, a balm to soothe the other memories that lingered insidiously in the back of his mind, pressing at him with cold fingers. Reich glanced back to the flames, casting the planes of his rough boned face crimson and orange, the flames echoing in the depths of his abyssal silver eyes. His piety was something that he had learned, too.
Each month he set off toward and through the Arma Mountains, gathering tributes - flowers, pretty stones, honey... He gathered it all and created a beautiful bundle of precious things for Calligo, entwining his own hair so that she would know it was from him. Then he trekked the treacherous path to the very peak of Veneror and placed his offering at the ancient temple, sometimes setting it alight if he still had the resources. His offering was tucked neatly beside him now, a woven mix of breastweed and forget-me-not as well as some dried jasmine he had to travel out of Novus to buy from merchants. Intwined in the pretty mix was some of his ebony hair, centred around a lovely piece of quartz he had found within the mountains. He was close enough that by tomorrow he would reach the peak - and thus begin his descent once again. The wind whistled past, though the Night Court warrior's little nook was quiet and still, a little slice of peace amongst the warring of the world around him.
@Noxia agh not my best but I wanted to get something up for them!
And it only hurts when I'm breathing
My heart only breaks when it's beating
Noxia wasn't the most religious. It was probably the only thing she hadn't ever even thought about becoming at some point. Her parents and herd had never had a God or higher being which they prayed to, and there had never been any religious ceremonies. Yet, when she arrived here this old equine told her stories of the god's here. Told her stories of how they were worshiped - and she had ended up residing in the land of Night. The only thing that she could think of was to visit this center of worship in the mountains. Perhaps she might learn something there - how it was people showed their respects.. a bit more about the idea of being religious.
Still, she had horrible guesses when it came to the time it would take to actually get to the top of the mountain. Her hooves were placed delicately along the treacherous path, but as the wind began to pick up she ended up panicking even further. This was definitely not safe. Perhaps she should just turn around, give up, go back. She could try again later when she heard someone was willing to go up this path. And damn, it was getting even colder. She could feel it nip at her coat as the night began to fall. She wasn't sure. She wanted to turn back. What if the wind blew her off balance and she fell down to her death?
Was the best way to get to safety to actually make it all the way to the top? She wasn't sure that she'd actually be able to end up making it there. It just wasn't safe. Not to mention the fact that it was getting darker and darker by the minute - which meant that she would have even more trouble seeing the path on her way up. Calligo... for whatever her blooming faith could offer, please keep her safe on her trip to the top. She really did not wish to die tonight...
@Reichenbach - lol, she doesn't notice the nook like a derp-face
The wind howled beside him, whistling as it passed the granite barrier that kept his nook from the worst of the weather. His hair tugged away from him, a wild mess of ebony curls and jangling coins that strained with the wind, throwing his scent over the side of the mountain and into the sky. The silver of his eyes burned orange as he followed the invisible flight, warm and awake beside the small fire that guttered in an occasional flood of breeze. It was the wind that brought her to him - sweet, floral, completely strange in the midst of the wild night. He stood, nose to the air, brows furrowed in a concerned, confused expression as he took in the enticing scent and searched the black, treacherous mountain for it's origin.
She appeared as a wraith, less than a horse and more of a slight smudge of shadow against the inky darkness, and Reich watched silently as she slowly took form. Here and there she was revealed - the fly of her taupe tresses against pale skin, the slip of a delicate shoulder, the line of her slender back... it took a few moments for him to realise that she was real, and not some apparition given form by Calligo.
His step was slow at first and then quicker as he pulled himself after her, nimbly leaping upward to catch her before she went too far for him to follow. Instantly the wind caught his hair and grabbed at it, the silky locks snapping distinctly about his rough boned face.
"You're mad!"
He called, the moonlight glinting on the wild grin that had plastered itself onto his roguish face. The wind took the words from his lips immediately, flying the musical sound toward the slender mare that was headed to the peak. Reich paused as he waited for her to turn, eyes alight with something different, something altogether natural and surreal - he looked as if he belonged there, wild and chaotic as the wind that interwove between them.
@Noxia sorry for the delay!! Got a puppy on the weekend and I've been spending all my time with him haha <3
And it only hurts when I'm breathing
My heart only breaks when it's beating
God. Calligo. Nox needed to get better at guessing how much time it would take to reach her destinations so that she wouldn't end up in these dangerous situations. Her bodice was trembling now - with the cold nipping at her coat and the wind beginning to pull her locks in violent motions around her bodice. Not safe. Not safe. She should have turned around while she had the chance. But now... now she was afraid if she started to turn her hoof might slip over the edge and she would tumble with it.
Nox thought she heard the sound of other hooves, but with the sound of the wind howling in her ears, she thought that she was just going crazy. It was only when she heard the sound of 'You're mad!" that her head snapped in the general direction and her eyes locked onto a grinning stallion. Her eyes widened, and her already trembling body was trembling even further in fear. He hadn't been there! He hadn't been there?!
She still didn't dare to turn her whole body, her neck was just twisted to the side as far as possible. His eyes, though... they didn't seem dangerous. The wind seemed to envelop him in a layer of safety, seemed to create the fiber of his being. In fact, the way his hair was being flipped around almost looked as if he dared to control the direction of each lock. Was this the work of Calligo? "The top has to be safer than here!?" she says, with her voice wavering in uncertainty. God, was she stupid. Stupid and scared. So scared, in fact, that her limbs were frozen in place - especially with the wind only getting worse.
Well, at least if you die you don't get to die alone - and I get a small show to continue to facepalm at. I swear Nox, you get yourself in some of the worst situations I've ever seen.
@Reichenbach -- it's fine! I've been derping around the past few days anyways. And OMG PUPPY! ^-^
His wild grin softened as she turned, fright making her soft coat stare, the wind snarling around her delicately boned face. It was an awful night to be climbing the peak, and she looked so small and fragile that something within Reichenbach's deep chest burned and growled to protect someone so gentle. His step was quick and nimble as he drew closer, silver eyes suddenly alight with purpose as her voice was thrown to him over the eddies of wild wind. When he was close enough for her to see he shook his head in answer, moving ever closer until, finally, he stood before her.
"Perhaps - but I wouldn't advise sleeping at the temple."
His voice echoed like warmth and wildness as he shifted to block the worst of the wind from her delicate frame, the following silence somewhat shocking as the whistle and whine of the wind was reduced. Gods, was she beautiful. Avian boned and tiny, he subtly slid his silver eyes from the tips of her dainty hooves and up the flawless elegance that was her breakable legs, slipping ever further until his long lashed gaze met hers. Her eyes were like chips of a cloudless day, baby blue and gentle - filled with fright. Reichenbach gave a gentle smile, offering:
"I have someplace safer - quieter, too. You can stay with me 'til morning"
He offered his soft lips as a comfort against her fragile neck, the contact leaving him wanting more. She smelled like rosewater and rain, her hair storing the scent like folds of silk. Reichenbach turned, agile and sure upon the steep path up the mountain, then swung his head back around and added;
"That is, if you would like to."
He sent a quick prayer up to Calligo as he spoke, hoping she might bless his night and encourage the delicate little mare to follow him back to camp. With a start he realised he didn't know her name, so he paused, half turning -
And it only hurts when I'm breathing
My heart only breaks when it's beating
He drew in closer, though she was already frozen in fear of the wind blowing her off the edge of the cliff. Blatantly, she does not know the best way to go about this. Nor does she really understand much about this weather at all. The faith toward an unknown God she was accepting as her own was all that had gotten her this far. So, here she stood, watching as he shook his head at her question about safety at the top.
It was only when he stood before her that he actually allowed more words to fall from his lips saying that he wouldn't advise sleeping at the temple. She trembles, feeling the stinging of her mane against her flesh - the sharp reminder that she is actually still existing. He moved again, though - shifting just enough to block out the worst of the wind which she had been trying to get away from. The strange pulse of silence in comparison to the loud howling stuns her, and she falls into a minor trance. Her eyes trace his lean frame - taking in how he can tower over her without creating a threatening aura. The way that his hair flickers across his square jaw and lines the sharp edges of his cheekbones. Truly, though, it was the way that he could keep a soft smile while the world was crying out around them that allowed her to start to drop some of the panic in her system. Enough to allow words when she had started to fall mute.
Safer, quieter. Her ears perked a little as she tries to swallow the nerves. Should she really go with him, though? Aye, she probably would have struggled with this thought had he not placed velveteen lips upon her hide before turning away and starting up the path. At the last second, he paused, and turned around to add in that it was only if she wished as well as offering his name. "... please?" she whispers, starting to move forward in order to follow after him. "N-Noxia," she offers before adding in a quiet "thank you," which might not have been heard over the howling of the winds.
@Reichenbach -- uh, holy hell I am alive. I'm so so sorry ;-;
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