Impa maintained her pleasant expression even when the blue mare before her grew tense, although she was a little confused about her companion’s initial reaction. Determined not to take it personally, the draft mare tilted her head to peer behind the tall mare, wondering if something else had put her on edge. Impazienza was too large and bulky to effectively sneak up on anyone. Her dark eye returned to her companion as the mare introduced herself, and Impa was glad to see she looked more relaxed.

“Welcome, Aphenia,” she said warmly. “My name is Impazienza. You can call me Impa, though. A little shorter, yeh. Where’re you from?” she asked, speaking informally in an attempt to put the blue mare more at ease. She propped one hind hoof on its tip and shifted her weight to the opposite hip. The soft vibration of hoofbeats vibrated through the ground and up against the frogs of her feet, and Impa twisted an ear back to listen. The familiar voice of Anath reached her ears, as well as the high, immature voice of a foal. She turned her head and whickered a warm greeting to the golden mare, recognizing the musky scent of the woman despite being unable to see her. “Anath,” she said as she reached out to pass her lips over the General’s shoulder. “It is good to see you again. This,” she said, dipping her nose to her right, “is Aphenia. She’s just arrived here. This is Anath,” Impa continued for Aphenia’s benefit with a light bump of her shoulder against the sturdy golden mare. “She’s the General of the Peak, the head warrior here. She’s been here longer than any other Vulcan.”

It was easy to forget, at least for a little while, the tumultuous beat of her heart when in the company of Anath, and of course the leggy Aphenia. Her ears pushed forward as she extended her neck a little toward the blue mare. “Will you be making a home here with us?”