If they do, then Solterra is not their mother," she said, wild and unforgiving as the desert is, "the sun does not bleed through their veins, the smell of the sand does not cling to their skin." And it is not that she would think less of anyone who this did not apply to, it is not that she thinks any who might leave are cowardly or somehow less Solterran than she, who would never leave. It is that she was raised surrounded by others who were filled with the same blind, unquestionable devotion as she. It is that she did not understand that there were those who would not lay down their life for the Day Court, regardless of what comes, as she would.
Teiran's sage green eyes roamed deftly over the ivory and red mare's face, noting the way she averted her own eyes and the downturn of her lips. Try as she did to place the expression, the rosy woman struggled. Shame, uncertainty? The other's cryptic response offered little assistance in the matter but how she came to be on Novus, let alone within Solterra, was curious for one who had never left the confines of their little corner of the world.
Teiran had never known anything but the sand and the sun and the court, and she had no reason to feel discontent. Despite the things that had happened in her youth she could not imagine leaving, had in fact been trained to believe in nothing, trust in nothing, but her court. Even after the deaths of both Zolin and Viceroy and the following chaos in which their little child army had fallen to pieces, she had never learned any differently. How could she, with nobody to show her there was another way? Many other ways, even.
"Your decision to come here was smart," she said, and it was perhaps as much of a compliment as the soldier would give anyone. When the medicine cap asked Teiran whether she would recommend staying in Solterra, she well and truly considered it. The simple answer was yes. She could fight, and had fought with them against the Davke. She seemed to have good sense, and Teiran could respect the fact that she seemed to talk about as much as herself.
The more important answer, however, was, "You should only stay if it feels like the right choice for you." Perhaps, if she had once been given a choice, she would be living a very different life.
Teiran's sage green eyes roamed deftly over the ivory and red mare's face, noting the way she averted her own eyes and the downturn of her lips. Try as she did to place the expression, the rosy woman struggled. Shame, uncertainty? The other's cryptic response offered little assistance in the matter but how she came to be on Novus, let alone within Solterra, was curious for one who had never left the confines of their little corner of the world.
Teiran had never known anything but the sand and the sun and the court, and she had no reason to feel discontent. Despite the things that had happened in her youth she could not imagine leaving, had in fact been trained to believe in nothing, trust in nothing, but her court. Even after the deaths of both Zolin and Viceroy and the following chaos in which their little child army had fallen to pieces, she had never learned any differently. How could she, with nobody to show her there was another way? Many other ways, even.
"Your decision to come here was smart," she said, and it was perhaps as much of a compliment as the soldier would give anyone. When the medicine cap asked Teiran whether she would recommend staying in Solterra, she well and truly considered it. The simple answer was yes. She could fight, and had fought with them against the Davke. She seemed to have good sense, and Teiran could respect the fact that she seemed to talk about as much as herself.
The more important answer, however, was, "You should only stay if it feels like the right choice for you." Perhaps, if she had once been given a choice, she would be living a very different life.
@Shrike
