Eik had watched from afar for most of the day while he grazed, observing the dynamics of the crowd and feeling the way the energy changed as the sun made its way across the sky. He was in no particular rush to join the chaos of the crowds- he mingled some with the other horses camped on the hillside but mostly kept to himself in pleasant silence. It was a good thing to enjoy the sweet tempered sun and the gentle breeze and the green grass- three things Solterra does not provide in summer.
As day turns to dusk turns to night, as the bonfires are lit and the smoke washes away the stars, he finally makes his way to the heart of the festival.
He has not seen this many people since the Winter's End Festival- but his memories of that event are rosy and blurred by intoxication. Here and now in total sobriety, everything seems loud and bright and sharp enough to bleed a man dry. Nobody else seems much bothered by it all- in fact they all seem completely carefree. He takes a moment to try to imagine himself feeling the way they seem to do, but instead finds a looming sense of isolation... So instead he tries to feel nothing at all as he picks his way very carefully through the thickening crowd, hoping to find a familiar face or a quiet corner to claim for his own.
Eik does not mean to stop where he does, but his attention was drawn by the sight of a long red braid flowing like blood under the silver light of the moon. It reminds him of something long forgotten, and as he rummages around his head for the discarded memory, she speaks.
'Enjoying the festivities?'
He is taken aback, both by the woman's interest (he is usually the one to disrupt people trying to go about their own business) and the question itself. He had not considered his own enjoyment. The night, not very dark at all thanks to lantern and firefly and moon, writhes with rhythm. There is some undeniable pleasure to be found in the beat of the drums, it is perhaps a primal reaction to the sound of something like so many heartbeats. But amidst the crowds and the noise and the smells, something withholds him from feeling enjoyment.
"It is a little overwhelming." Eik does not sound terribly upset, but there is a fidgety, anxious look in his dark eyes. A drink or four would settle him down. "But I've only recently arrived. And yourself?" He looks at her intently for a moment, searching for what depth lies behind her golden eyes, before absent-mindedly scanning the crowd in search of refreshment.
- - -
There is no better way to know us
E I K
than as two wolves, come separately to a wood
@Indra hope you don't mind <3
