The ground rose gently and smoothly at first, soft and green underfoot and with few rocks or boulders to mar their path. Inka allowed her daughter to lead the way, though she kept her eyes and ears sharp, making sure to gently guide Jetta with a gentle touch on the hip when the girl was unsure which path to take. Jetta, meanwhile, kept her bright blue eyes firmly on the ground as it rose beneath her, analyzing every inch of the earth as if concerned it would crumble away at any moment. Every tiny hoof she placed with utmost care, and her nose hung so low it almost brushed the grass. So indulged was the filly in mapping out her every movement that she was oblivious to the big pale pale mare up ahead, looking down at them from higher ground. When the stranger spoke, Jetta jerked her head upward and froze, staring ahead like a deer in headlights.

Inka, however, had spotted Marlena well in advance, and trotted past her daughter to greet the tall mare with a bright smile. "Marlena, it's so good to see you too. And thank you," she dipped her head and glanced backward at her daughter, who had unfrozen and was now creeping foward as slowly as a tortoise. Her eyes were wide and round in the pale mask of her face, and her lips hung open and loose. When Marlena spoke to her, she became still again, tucking her chin into her chest with obvious embarrassment. Pressing close against the dark warmth of her mother's side, Jetta did not look at Marlena as she muttered a soft "hello".

Inka, unperturbed by her daughter's hyperbolic shyness, chuckled merrily. Before she could properly introduce the pair, however, movement in her peripheral vision caught her attention and she watched as a small, timid-looking chestnut mare approach from low ground. Something about the stranger was familiar, but it was not until she spoke that the lightbulb switched on in Inka's head. "Hello, we met in the meadow, didn't we? I'm sorry, I don't recall your name," she said politely, not recalling if they had even exchanged names. Though her expression was not as open and animated as it had been when she greeted Marlena, her smile was just as genuine. Jetta, meanwhile, continued to cling to her mother's side, though she had forgotten enough of her shyness to stare more curiously at this red stranger who was closer to her size than the other two.