Who Are You? [ Isykle x Thadeus ]

Thadeus was in good spirits having been recently united with his mother. The Talori’s triumph over the Flock had brought many good things to him. His mother was noticeably calmer and less snappy than he was used to. Also, the young colt found he had gained not one but two new houses, each filled with rooms and things of his very own. It was a far step from his tragic beginnings in a prisoner war camp. Finally, all the promises his mother had made, seemed to be coming true.

Things were changing rapidly, but not all of it was for the better. The last Emperor, Thadeus’ uncle was murdered just like his dad, the Defender had, and a girl had taken his place. Not that Thadeus really minded that his ruler was Empress, he was used to strong women being in charge around him. however, the new laws Empress Thalassa was passing were another story. After all they had done, how could anyone see a pegasus as anything else than the untrustworthy scum they were?

So, things were far from stable, but for the most part Thadeus was adapting nicely and coming into his own with his newfound freedom. For once, he could actually act like a kid, play, be loud, explore. And that’s exactly what he was doing now.

.....

Nagisa had taken her son along with her to the village of Honeywater so they could spend some time in the country and pick up some much needed supplies from some of her favorite vendors. Thadeus didn’t have much patience for shopping, so at the first opportunity he left his mother’s side (with her permission of course) to go check out the town.

It wasn’t long until Thadeus reached the border of the small village. The lush forest beyond the equine-made architecture was beautiful, untamed territory, just beckoning to be explored.  A frantic sound of rustling leaves caught the colt's attention. His breath caught in his throat. Was it an animal? Did a branch fall? Whatever it was, it sounded close.

Timidly at first, then more boldly, Thadeus stepped into the thicket, determined to solve the mystery. As he snuck through the bushes, he could still hear the leaves rustle. So it was definitely not a branch. Then he started to hear the grunts of someone struggling. It was someone trapped in the vines. A filly by the looks of it.

Confused and a bit amused, Thadeus came into the clearing and made his way towards her.

“What are you doing?”

'Hanging out?' Thadeus snorted, completely entertained by the scaled filly twirling around helplessly in her leafy prison.  She looked ridiculously hilarious.

Ever so quizzical, Thadeus walked closer and around filly, studying the vine placement while trying to figure out how such a mess was made in the first place. He couldn't for the life of him, figure it out, but one thing was for sure... she was stuck and stuck bad.

Upon closer inspection, Thadeus also began to take more notice of the filly's unique physical characteristics.  She had horns and a scaled tail like that one kid, Gaelan, he met in the jungle ruins.  He had called himself a pegasus but it was obvious to Thadeus he was some kind of weird hippocampus.  They never got a chance to really settle  that debate but maybe this new filly would be able to.

"You're tangled up pretty bad alright."  Thadeus proclaimed while taking a seat near by.  He pulled out a fruit snack his mom had packed him and began munching on it.  "So, how do plan on getting yourself out?"  The colt was beyond curious.