[P] You lift me up and I am found

[Asterion]

Asterion in sunshine and in shadow*   Florentine is not the only horse he knows, to have come from the rift-lands. There is Lysander, the strange stallion who Asterion can not bring himself to trust, and of course Calliope and Raymond, and he knows, too, that Karou had gone there after Ravos. (Sometimes he wonders why the feral magic in Ravos had chosen the way it did, putting some of them in an even wilder place, but leaving him behind). Yet for that, he does not expect what Katniss says next. “You know her?” he asks, and is genuinely surprised for what feels like the first time since Vespera had vanished from their court with a horde of gophers. This time, at least, it carries an undercurrent of joy with it, even as his mouth turns more grim at her question. “She’s injured from an accident some months ago. She’s had a difficult time, of late - but then I guess we all have.” He pauses before considering just how sour his words sound, in this room of laughter and magic, and he adds, “but she’s still herself. Amazing and…talkative.” The bay does not mention that she is the reason he is king - that it was because of her injury and loss of memory that he took her place. It is already past. But he wonders (and does not ask) who else she knows - if she knew his father, too. Certainly she must have, to know Florentine. But it is something like fear that keeps him from asking after Gabriel. He listens as she again says she cannot feel the presence of her friend. This time, unlike the afternoon spent rebuilding, he picks up on the subtleties of her meaning. Asterion says nothing - what could he say? - but when his gaze meets hers, he tries to convey his understanding. Perhaps, if he had Eik’s abilities, he would convey to her that he knows what it is to lose the ones you love, too. Though he hadn’t expected her judgement, something still loosens in him when she smiles. As she goes on to offer her help he echoes her expression, knowing she means it. When he responds, he is equally sincere. “Thank you, Katniss. I will.” It is almost easy to forget they stand in the midst of a party, with their conversation taking the turns it has. At her words he, too, turns back to the revelry around them. For a moment he considers it the way she must - the way he had, in the beginning. It is not difficult to recall the mixture of awe and unease he’d felt, first seeing Terrastella. “The cities all do, at least. I was so bewildered when I first arrived, and I still prefer to sleep outdoors. But the books, and the music…” Asterion trails off, momentarily lost in his memories; his smile fades and is replaced by a softly furrowed brow. “There are some wondrous things, here. But I worry it makes us soft.” @Katniss