"Come along," Inka murmured gently to her daughter as they broke free of the trees, but the girl remained frozen, staring wide-eyed at the expanse of mountain that rose before them. "You've seen it before," Inka pointed out, though she knew that was only half-true. For the dozen or so days following the birth, the Friesian mare had kept her newborn daughter tucked away in a sheltered glade where the mountain was only visible in snippets through the tops of the trees: nothing that a newborn foal was likely to notice. Now that the snows had melted, she thought it was time to properly introduce the filly to her home.

Still her daughter refused to budge, as if her tiny brain could not process something so large. With a resigned sigh, Inka stood and waited, taking the opportunity to appreciate the way Jetta looked in open sunlight. The white of her face and legs was so pristine it was almost blinding against the dark brown of her body, and her blue eyes were so bright and vibrant they seemed to reflect the sky. She takes after her father, Inka mused with a soft smile.

When Jetta continued to show no sign of moving, the mare decided to change tactics. "Okay, I guess I'm leaving without you," she teased with an overdramatic roll of her eyes, and without further ado began to approach the rocky base of the mountain alone. She did not need to wait long; it only took the space of a breath before Jetta made a sound that was half squeal, half wail. "Mama, wait! Wait!" the filly cried with tears thick in her throat, and scrambled to catch up with her mother.

Inka paused in her stride to let her daughter reach her, and with a chuckle lowered her nose to offer the girl a reassuring touch. "Oh, sweetie, I was only joking; I wouldn't really leave you behind!" It broke Inka's heart to see her daughter staring up at her with such big, forlorn eyes, but she smiled all the same. "Come on, we're going to explore today! Aren't you excited to see the top of the mountain?"

Jetta huffed as if she were about to cry, but her expression softened and her ears came forward. "Yes," she finally admitted.

Inka stood tall and pointed her sleek, rounded body toward the mountain. "Me too," she said. "Race you to the top?"

Jetta laughed and began trotting ahead of her mother. "Mama, that's silly!"