sable
When Sable discovered that her companion was not an island native, her brow ridges knit together in perplexion. So far, all the horses she’d met in her travels had been pale and either striped or spotted, as Sahin was, so it had only been natural for her to assume that he was as endemic to these lands as the rest of them. Rather than be delighted at the prospect of meeting someone who had come from the same place as her, the young mare felt only a strange sense of frustration. It didn’t make sense to her; it didn’t fit together like a nice little puzzle, as it should have.
Then, an image of an old, sway-backed stallion the color of milk flashed in her mind, and she found herself wondering about something else altogether.
Sahin’s voice broke her reverie, and she looked up at him with a grateful smile. Paradise? Did he name it himself? she mused, but said outloud only, “Thank you.” She was alarmed when he broke into a sudden trot – and for half a heartbeat she thought he was going to abandon her for a run like the one he’d had earlier – but he quickly corrected himself, falling back in beside her. He seems to be a very energetic fellow. At his question, she ummed and recalled the islands she’d visited so far. Truth be told, the novelty of swimming between them had worn off quickly, but for now she was grateful to be so far from home. “Actually, this is the only one I’ve been to, other than the big one with the waterfall. No one’s actually told me how many there are.” She tried to imagine what the rest might be like, but her mind came up blank.
“I’m guessing not all the islands are paradises,” she quipped off-handedly, but her eyes were drawn to a break of dappled light in the trees that grew closer and closer with each step. Her heart seemed to float up into her throat as her vision adjusted and caught visual snippets of a vast plain beyond, glowing gold in the afternoon light. It was beautiful. Her heart yearned to move toward it, to break through the foliage and bask in its glory, but – timid as ever – Sable would wait until Sahin guided them in its direction.
{15'2 smoky seal brown mutt}
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