It seemed an eternity before Şahin was rewarded with Mera’s excited squeal and jubilant cavorting. A slow smile overtook his dark lips and he looked up at the girl’s mother with gratitude in his dark eyes. The mare was regarding him with what he thought was an unfavorable expression, and he wondered if he’d made a mistake. He had no desire to live with someone so cold. The mare’s attitude toward him was enough to make him forget he stood in the heart of sunny Paradise. But Esmerelda’s exuberance was contagious, and he reminded himself that not every horse had had the same experiences as him. He would have devoted more time to considering Xina had the pale filly not reached for the hair by his ears.

The shining palomino stallion lowered his head to oblige the girl, and laughed when she challenged him to a race. It would be good to run, he thought as the filly sped toward the shore. He cocked his head at Xina to invite her to join their fun before he took off after Esmerelda. He was pleased to see she stayed away from the retreating tide, although he splashed into the ocean so that when he finally caught up to Mera, his body was between her and the dangerous sea. With a high whinny he reached over and tugged at a hank of her mane before trotting just ahead of her and glancing back to see if she’d come engage him in a game of chase.

[d’aw so cute c: <3 I think we could end this thread here and start a new one soon. Sahin will want to pick at Xina’s brain and/or play with Mera some more haha]