there are no markings on her country roads
no signs that show the way back home
Reassurance was something that Otem never received from her mother or twin. Volterra offered her compliments and praise, but the words always sounded a little pale to Otem, as if even from a young age she knew that he was obligated to adore and cherish every single thing that she did. Hearing praise from someone who had no such obligation was like feeling a warm breeze when you were soaked and cold. It invigorated Otem, and without realizing it, she found herself beaming at the older girl. "You're right." She gushed. "The Throat was never really the best place to learn. Cacti don't really need a lot of tending to, and there wasn't really anywhere fertile to practice."
Although Maude hadn't waited for Otem to answer before pulling out the nightshade, had she looked, the filly's response would have been clear enough: her eyes had grown wide and glistened with intrigue and anticipation. Slyly Otem peered forward a touch, as if trying to see into Maude's bag as the girl searched and searched, finally pulling out a potted plant.
"Oh! The Edge! I was almost b-" She began, but as the plant caught fire the filly leaped backwards, wings spread from her flanks and nostrils wide, ready to take off should this present danger continue. Tactfully Maude put it out quickly, making the younger girl feel a bit silly for how abruptly she had reacted. "No I'm fine-" Otem answered, trying to hide the shake in her voice as she folded her wings tightly back against her flanks.
"This place just seems mean, doesn't it?" Otem said, her voice lowered as she looked around, as if the seashore could hear her and prove her words correct.
"Anyways. I was almost born in the Edge. My mom lived there, until my Father asked her to move in with him...I think I would have liked living there.." The thought of her dead mother and a home and future she would never have access to made her lower lip curl and her shoulders slump.
Ultima
