Catherine
*Through the dense foliage of the wilderness, a clump ferns found themselves being disturbed by the snout of an overly curious Jackal. He sniffed around the area in search of potential company though upon finding nothing of interest he let out a huff of disappointment. Not far away, Juna was making her way through the forest, occasionally finding herself having to look back to make sure her Jackal didn't wander too far.*"Stay close Jace..."*She said, knowing full well the Jackal probably didn't understand her. However, sure enough after his short exploration, Jace would find himself gradually returning to his owner's side. 

It had only been a week or two since Juna had decided to stay in Lymia for the sake of waiting on Eggbert to hatch and since then she had been trying her best to get used to this new forest. The Canifor tried to stay away from the borderline that was the mansion she had come across before, deciding to try out a new forest on another side of Pepor. So far luck hadn't really been are her side, finding it hard to find and catch prey in the new environment. 

That didn't keep Juna too down though. At least Jace seemed to be enjoying himself with the new change of pace. So for now, she simply decide to enjoy the walk just like Adeliza when the two first encountered each other.*
Melissa
*The weather had recently begun to start getting colder and colder as it appeared winter was coming very soon, and each night became more and more of a risk to sleep through without warmth. But as juna searched for something or someone to talk too for awhile, or some prey to eat. She instead found a woman sitting by a firepit cooking a rabbit, beside her stood a large 8ft tall horse with a mane that was ijcredibly long covering its face for the most part. It appeared to be whispering something to woman who was cooking the rabbit.*
James
*Edith had been traveling all day long down this pathway and decided to set up camp since it was beginning to get dark, she had managed to catch a rabbit not long ago. She had also found a near by river and fire wood, but the campsite itself was quite far from the riverside as to avoid encounters with the wildlife that also needed a drink.

As she sat there by the fire cooking her rabbit she tried to pat her horses head, but the horse didnt really seem to react. She felt a bit lonely out here but she knew it was probably for the best no one else got caught outside at night.*
Edith
*As edith sat next to the fire, right beaide her was a rather large horse towering above her. Its head drooped down beside edith its long mane threatening to catch fire at any second from the heat of the fire pit. Its appearance was ghastly its greyish white eyes looked dead, its hide appeared rotten and dirty yet somehow still pure white. Its hooves were cracked and breaking like they hadnt been taken care of ever, this horse looked more dead than alive. 

It started whispering in ediths ear telling her something.*
Catherine
*Juna gently crossed her arms as she continued walking, trying to sustain her own warmth as the chill of the night began to reach her. She knew it would be best to try to set up camp somewhere, but she knew little of these woods to feel safe enough.*"Maybe we... Should head back soon Jace..."*She whispered. The Canifor figured her best bet would be to make her way back to the Capitol where there remained promise of a Tavern at the very least.

In the distance, the flickering light of a fire crossed her sight as it seemed to stand like a beacon against the night.*"Light...?"*She whispered.*"Someone must be camping here..."*Juna wasn't quite sure if that was a good thing or not especially with her last questionable encounter out in the Lymia's woods. Though of course that didn't seem to phase Jace one bit as he continued pacing towards it.*"Jace no-"*She quickly said, following after him.

Seeing his owner coming with, the Jackal seemed to find more purpose in continuing onward, soon coming to the edge of the camp to which Juna would finally grab the Jackal and hold him in place from where they stood in the underbrush just beyond the campsite.

Juna held her breath for a moment, not trying to make her presence known to whoever it was they were invading. Jace had finally settled down, lowering himself as if it were another scout session of theirs to which Juna would just have to accept it for now. She looked over towards the makeup of the camp, focusing on first the rabbit that was cooking before eventually shifting to the woman that sat nearby with her horse. A horse. Of course it was a horse and a rather large one at best. Juna could feel herself tensing up with uneasiness, finding exasperation in their situation.*
Melissa
*As juna and her jackel sat there observing the woman and the horse they felt a gust of wind roll through, the fire flickered and danced around and sometimes threatened to go out. But with the constant stream of twigs and brush being fed to it, it didn't. The underbrush the two hid in provided good wind protection so they didnt feel it as much but that wouldnt last through the winter once the leafs had fallen.*
James
*Edith had run out of brush and twigs to toss into the fire and so they stood up and walked over to the edge of the campsite to gather some twigs, sticks, and leafs. But luckily for juna and the jackal her nightvision had been severely hindered from staring at the firepit, and with the cover they had in the shadows they remained unseen, but they did get a good look at the woman. They saw that her equipment was shabby rusted and quite a bit damaged, any self respecting warrior wouldnt let their equipment fall into such disrepair. Her eyes had dark rings under them almost as if she hadnt had a good sleep in months, maybe longer. After gathering the brush and twigs she returned to the fire tossing some into it as they kept waiting for the rabbit to finish cooking.*
Edith
*The horse leaned its head right next to ediths as it began to speak in a deep and unnerving voice, while whispering its mouth looked unnatural. A horses mouth wasnt meant to make these movements and sounds and yet it did.*

"You must rest child.. The cold bite of the night will claim your hands and feet if you do not rest, be mindful of this fact child..."

*With those words it backed away and just stood still observing edith and the rabbit, it wasnt clear if it wanted to eat the rabbit or if it enjoyed the smell..*
Catherine
*Juna stared at the two, transfixed for the moment almost as if she was seeing something she wasn't supposed to with the horse seemingly speaking to the woman. Her ears flicked at its words, soon dropping her gaze away from them and slowly letting go of Jace.*"Let's head back-"*She quickly said. With Jace feeling the release of his owner, the Jackal took it as a sign to move forward which he would do exactly that as he darted out into the middle of the camp.*

"Jace-!"*She yelled after him. The Jackal turned to the woman, letting out a bark of warning at her as if trying to ward them off for some reason. Juna quickly bursted out of the underbrush after him. The last thing she'd want is for the lady or even horse to react to him with whatever weapon they had of their own.*
James
*As the jackal jumped out of the brush edith heard the leafs rustle and the sound of running, and before the jackal had even made it a meter towards her and the horse she had already stood up and had her sword drawn, ready to fend off whatever animal as about to attack them. 

But upon seeing it stop to bark at her she lowered her weapon now no longer willing to kill it, the way it acted suggested it was a pet that may just be hungry. But as she was gettibg ready to break off some rabbit meat for it, she heard juna yelling for the jackal from behind her. So she just cut the rabbit in half, the rabbit only had about half of it cooked anyways so she figured she should show her company some hospitality.

She turned around with half of a cooked rabbit in her right hand and a shield in her left, sure she was friendly and wouldn't hesitate to offer help to strangers. But that didnt mean she would take the risk of being attacked without some kind of defence.*

"Um. Excuse me, would you like some food?"
Edith
*The horse stood still observing the situation unfolding before them, it didn't seemed bothered by the jackal or the girl that followed behind it. It simply watched how edith reacted judging her speed how she handled the campsite invaders, and judging how she spoke.*
Melissa
*The night had set in and it was cold, but when juna came into the campsite she felt the heat of the fire, it was very inviting. And the aroma of cooked rabbit wafted around the camp, a smell that was good enough to wake up anyones appetite esspecially to someone who hasnt eaten in days.. And with someone offering them some food and warmth it seemed to be a pretty good offer.*
Catherine
*Hurriedly following after the Jackal, Juna found herself having to come to a quick stop as her Jackal suddenly stood before the woman. She froze for the moment while trying to process the sudden question.*"Food?"*She repeated in an almost dumbfounded tone at the offer. Her Jackal meanwhile would look up at Edith, completely disregarding everything else around him as he focused on the meat she was holding, letting out a bark in demand for it.

After a quick pause, Juna quickly shook her head. Between the rush to get her loud Jackal and the uncanniness of the horse nearby, she found it almost hard to focus on what she said.*

"I- no... I mean, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to invade your camp-"*She tried to get out, finding herself stumbling a bit on her words as she tried to not off as rude.*"You... You don't need to give us food, I know... Obtaining it was probably hard out here..."*There was a slight thought in the back at Juna's mind that maybe Edith wasn't struggling to find prey as much as she was with the potential of her being more accustomed to it, but didn't feel right to simply take the food from her without any contribution to it. Especially with winter nearing. Prey could only become scarcer.*"My Jackal just... Listens to himself more than... Me..."
James
*Edith set her shield down beside the firepit and began to walk over to juna, she handed her the roasted rabbit meat for her to split between her and the jackal. She then spoke in a somewhat quiet and polite tone.*

"No no. Its fine really, trust me theres plenty of things to eat out here besides meat and i didnt give you all of the rabbit."

*She paused for a moment as she backed up worried that she may have come off as rude for approaching her and giving her the rabbit without any prompt. She then took a seat beside the fire and looked over at juna.*

"I know we just met and you may not really trust me but you are welcome to stay here for the night, it gets very cold in the dark and it may be hard to start a fire without any light."
Edith
*The horse approached the fire and took a bite out of the rabbit which was cooking on a stick, it didn't really need to eat but it enjoyed the feeling of chewing and the flavor. Although to anyone seeing this towering horse eating meet, it may come off as somewhat horrifying, as a herbivore eating meat is a very strange thing to witness.*
Melissa
*The rabbit meat that juna was handed was still very warm, not enough to cause her hands any pain but they would make her hands warm. The fire was crackling as it burned the twigs and brush tossed inside, some embers floating up into the air only to stop glowing and descend back down to the ground moments later. The crickets chirping filled the night time air around them, the sound often made people tired as it happened when most people were going to sleep, so it just became associated with it. The shadows of the horse and edith danced along the trees behind them as the fire flickered.*
Catherine
"Yeah... Yeah you're right..."*Juna would say quietly in agreement to her. Winter was coming soon and Juna had yet to find a way to prepare for it in this unknown terrain. She hoped Eggbert would be okay with the incoming winter at least, but as for her and Jace, maybe traveling through the forest won't be such a great idea.*"Thank you..."*She whispered with part of the rabbit sat securely in her hands. Jace looked up at her, hopping up on his hind legs as he let out a bark to get her attention.

Giving the Jackal a pat on his head, she would offer the rabbit down to her Jackal. In response he had quickly clamped his jaws down on it, dragging away the entire thing though Juna was alright with that. Her gaze flitted over towards the horse, watching it eat the rabbit.*

"Um... Do horses usually eat meat...?"*Of course Juna was not expert on horses, far from it actually. However, Juna could not help but fail to recall ever a time where horse's had eaten meat. Usually it was grass and other plants, right?*
James
*Edith looked at the horse who had taken a bite from the rabbit, she had seen the horse eat meat before but it never seemed to have a need to eat, it just ate what it thought tasted good. But juna was right horses didnt typically eat meat so she turned to her and said.*

"This horse is not exactly normal, its-"

*Thats as far as she got before the horse turned around and attempted to kick her with his hind legs, its speed and power clearly would have been enough to shattered her bones if it connected. But edith managed to dodge and roll out of the way before being kicked. Edith stared at the horse seemingly a bit annoyed before continuing.*

"It's not normal, it's a dire horse from what it says. Its some kind of rare breed of horse i think.. And it tends to eat meat and whatever tastes good."

*She sat back down by the fire taking the cooked rabbit that remained and splitting it in half offering juna a piece, it was half a quarter of the rabbit that was left. But it seemed she wanted to make sure juna had something to eat even if it wasnt much..*
Edith
*The horse having tested ediths reflexes to dodge an attack incoming mid conversation, and her passing the test decided to let her be. It only wanted to make sure she was ready and it appeared she was. And when edith offered juna the rabbit the horse leaned in and said.*

"Are you sure you want them to have half of it, you may be weaker tomorrow child... You need it more than them.."
James
*Edith turned to the horse and said.*

"Well i can always catch another rabbit or forage for somthing, or i can go into town tomorrow for something. So this wont hurt me, theres no need to be greedy horse. Plus if you wanted me to eat more then you shouldnt have eaten half the remaining rabbit."
Edith
*The horse nodded and backed up from edith saying.*

"Very well child.. Do as you wish."

*It appeared to be satisfied with her response not needing anymore said to it, the horse seemed to be continuing to judge ediths every movement like it was grading her performance and how well she handle situations.*
Catherine
*Juna clenched her teeth as the horse went to kick Edith, part of her relieved that she managed to avoid it while the other part couldn't help but back away to create distance from the violent nature of the horse with lowered ears. She took the small piece of rabbit that was offered to her, gladly enough with Jace distracted on wolfing down his own piece.

It wasn't until she had caught word of their conversation that her ears finally shot back up, giving way to an alerted expression.*"Your... Your horse... It can talk??"*Juna knew little about horses, but she was for certain of one thing on animals not being able to speak. Well most anyways, but much less horses. Horses neighed and made those strange high pitched sounds. Such a very high pitch. The thought alone left the loud noise ringing in her ears, but this horse, it could speak.

Could it be like a centaur? Surely not, it still has the head of a horse which only made the way it spoke even more strange in her eyes. Not to mention the fact that it was whatever this dire horse was. Something that seemed to cause it to eat meat over regular grass.*
James
*She looked at juna when she said the horse can talk, she then looked at horse and shrugged and then looked back at juna, she then spoke in a voice that didnt sound weirded out or confused.*

"Well i dont know alot about other horses, but this one can talk and he does talk. Alot.. But i wouldnt worry about it if i were you its just one of lifes weird mysterys. Honestly what confuses me more is how he doesnt stay dead no matter how many times he's killed."

*She leaned back using her hands to prop herself up, she stared at the fire relaxing and enjoying the heat that warmed up her toes and face. The cold was never fun but fire always made it bearable.*
Edith
*The horse leaned towards edith and spoke in a deep and angry sounding voice.*

"You speak too much child.."

*It's words came off as incredibly threatening aimed at edith, the horse stared at edith with its unblinking dead eyes. The horse continuer to stare for some time without so much as a twitch, it seemed dead that is until edith pushed it away from herself to continue enjoying the fire. It appeared she had dealt with this before.*
Melissa
*As the night went on the temperature continued to drop, but with the fire before them continuing to burn they managed to stay warm, only occasionally feeling a chill on their backs from the wind. And as the temperature dropped the crickets went silent, the only sound now remaining was the crackling of the fire and the whistle of the wind blowing through the trees rattling branches and shaking leaves. Edith appeared to be laying on her back now watching the stars above them, she seemed to enjoy the view.*
Catherine
"Is... Is he real...?"*She asked. Of course in terms of real she wasn't asking if she was imagining him, but more so in question of whether or not he was some kind of summon with how she explained him repeatedly returning from death or maybe he was a ghost even, but Juna didn't want to believe that, hearing enough children tales as it was.

The bit of rabbit meat she was given had sat forgotten in her hands for the time being as she tried to process the logic of a horse being able to talk. Even if it was a summon, could summons actually speak? She suppose she did see someone summon a butler once who spoke just fine, but this was a horse they were talking about. Never before had her wolf summons been able to talk. Maybe that wasn't the case.*

"He... He doesn't seem to be the nicest horse..."*She'd utter quietly, unsure of whether or not the horse would take offense to that with her little knowledge of what horses understood. Why must strange things happen in the forests of Lymia whenever she passed through? First the very odd cursed Maiden and now this? Was there something more to this place that Juna didn't realize? The sudden chill didn't help much, only sending shiver down her spine at the thought. She could very well be hallucinating, especially with the ghastly appearance of the two. Maybe she was, perhaps becoming one of those wanderers who traveled too far into the forests only to never be seen again. She shuddered at the thought.*
James
*She kept staring up at the stars and admiring the beauty of constellations that is until juna asked if he was real and commented on the fact he wanst very nice, she then looked over at her and said.*

"He's very much real and while he isn't the most charismatic horse you'll meet, he is actually a very caring person once you getto know him. He would sacrifice himself to save you or me anyday at anytime, and i know that whole kicking thing he does may seem a bit cruel but he does it with the best of intentions, even if he wont admit it infront of people."

*She let out a slight chuckle as she continued.*

"Personally i think he is just a bit shy, he isnt good at expressing himself and just puts up the persona of a scary or intimidating monster. But one day he'll open up more and finally make some new friends."
Edith
*The horse stared down at edith as she revealed alot about him, he leaned his head close tl her face and said in a deep and gravely voice.*

"You are out of line child.. You shall not have my assistance til the rising of the third moon, and at the cost of blood.."

*The horse turned around and walked off into the dark forest behind edith, it seemed to vanish into the black abyss lurking just beyond the trees where the fires light could not reach.*
James
*She tossed some more twigs into the fire seemingly unbothered by the horse leaving so suddenly, maybe this has happened before. Or maybe it was just cause it would be too dangerous to wanderthe forest at night and she'd search for them tomorrow.*