It is the depths of winter. It is one of the bitterest that the kingdom of Hyla has seen in recent history, and to make matters worse, neighboring Elas is a region of notoriously impenetrable mountain passes. Luckily, Mateo and Ezra have managed to make it to the southern plains. All they have left is to make it to the northern borders of their kingdom, and the two princes will be able to transfer their message via courtiers. The journey is like a marathon, despite being shorter than most trips between kingdoms. Mateo leads, as he is the eldest sibling. His horse is steady in the snow, having been bred to resist the cold. Ezra fares differently, and his horse treads slowly. "How much longer?" he calls from behind. Mateo spares a glance. "It should only be a couple of hours. Why?" The other brother looks worriedly at the sky. "It feels like a storm might be coming. The horses are getting agitated." It's true; the tails of both are swishing, and the shadowy veil above doesn't seem to show any better signs. "It'll be fine. Our mages back at home might be searching for us now; you know Aria keeps an eye on storms when it gets bad like this." Mateo doesn't sound very sure of himself, but Ezra is quiet. Thankfully, because Mateo isn't certain of anything right now. The possibility of getting lost is still there, even with a good sense of direction. The snow is blinding, and he might not be able to keep them on track. Even with all this, Mateo's expression is as unchanging as the landscape. The two continue to ride on. - A young red-winged blackbird flies and flitters up into the balcony of Aria's study. She is kneeling on the ground with a circle of redluster powder, and doesn't even look up when the bird hops into her circle. Eyes still closed in meditation, she allows the blackbird to jump up on her arm. It chirps for a time before Aria's eyes fly open in shock. "And they don't know of my treachery? Only that there is a traitor somewhere?" The creature chirps in agreement. Aria hums. "That changes things. Alas..." She picks up the bird and gives it a lift, tossing her arm up into the windy world outside her window. Turning back to her minerals, she scatters the runes she already had scrawled on the floor, sending a handful of white petals flying like a gust of winter wind. Rewriting them to be more hostile, she sighs. It is a shame to see Mateo and Ezra go, but she will do what her Lady requires. "...the remorse of a mortal will not move a god's prophecy." The storm picks up as she begins to sing the rite of the solstice, howling in discontent. -
Ezra is freezing, but he'll deal with it so long as the horse *stays on the dang path*. "Couldn't have gotten a better horse," he mutters. "No, there's this instea-" He pauses his ramblings, eyes flickering around. The snow is falling just as heavily and at the same angle, but he can't hear the wind anymore. The snorts and quick footfalls of the steeds are gone, just a gentle tapping at his subconscious. Suddenly, he feels drowsy. His eyelids begin to close, until for a split second he can hear again. Despite the world going quiet once more, he's awake now. Mateo isn't. He rushes to his brother's side, ignoring the straying horse he's leaving behind. Mat can't fall asleep in the snow, he'll freeze, *please-* Mateo wakes. He holds on to the horse's saddle for stability as Ezra helps him up, but he still looks more tired than a dead man. He thinks the worst has passed as he heads back to his own steed, but then the blizzard renews its ferocity, and sound comes sweeping back into his ears. It nearly forces him to the ground, and when he can finally stand, he finds that his horse is gone. *It must have gotten nervous and ran*, he thinks. Ezra tries to call for the horse, but how is any animal, even if it had the best hearing in the world, to hear above the storm. Mateo is still in earshot, and circles back. They have to abandon a pack of food to make room. Fortunately, the horse is strong. The pace of Mateo's breath is frantic. Ezra knows that whatever conclusion his older brother has come up with, he won't be able to. He doesn't get the chance to ask, though, because the words start to spill from Mateo's lips the second they get moving again. "So that was clearly a spell of some sort, and we only know a few people that could create that kind of magic, and they all happen to be mages of the highest order. So now we know who the traitor is, but all the clerics and priestesses are well trusted and could easily block us from crossing the border-" "Mateo. We're going to get frostbite at this pace and there's no way we can go any faster. Save your energy on not dying before we get home." That keeps Mat quiet. But Ezra can feel the winds rising. It's one of his oldest nightmares coming to life, and he might just die from it. It was only ever an old wives' tale, that you could die from a dream, but here there are no midnight wake-ups to save him. He'll just have to take his own word for it and relax. That proves impossible when- *oh gods*. "Ezra, when we get home- we have to arrest Aria for the highest form of treason." Because there, even in the snow, the barren waste: they can only watch as a white lily forms and rests on the ice.
