When the stranger smiled at her and assured her that he was capable of what she had asked, she looked at him for a split second with a blank expression, then closed her eyes and minutely shook her head, as he had done moments before, as if he were the youth, and not her. He had misunderstood her - she had not meant 'cool' in the way that children used, to denote that they were popular, but in the way that adults used, to indicate they were no threat.

When she reopened her eyes and opened her mouth to correct him, however, the stallion changed the conversation and introduced himself, so she pressed her pink lips back together with a mental shrug. She did not like the fact that he called her "child" - couldn't he see she was already a year old and almost as tall as he was? - but his manners and charm were beginning to win her over, and it was clear he was no threat by the ironic way he had misunderstood her, so she decided to let him off by offering him a warm smile to mirror his own.

"It's nice to meet you, Hannibal. My name is Jetta," she replied, pronouncing the 'j' like a 'y' and dipping her pale head in a quick, respectful nod.

This Hannibal was a smooth dude, all right. She wondered if her mother would like him, and whether she should lead Hannibal back to Inka to find out. Mother... With a jolt, she remembered the sleeping mare and newborn foal she had left without a word back in their little grove of trees. Inka could awaken any moment, and she would not be happy that Jetta had wandered off yet again, especially on her baby sister's first day in the big, wide world.

Jetta twisted one ear back and tried to make the fading of her smile seem natural. "I should really be going, though." The filly shifted her weight anxiously and flicked her dark, growing tail. "My baby sister was born just last night and I'll be in trouble if I don't spend some time with her. Um, if you want to talk to Impa, she might be at the very top of the mountain, where the river starts. Even if she isn't, it's really pretty up there; you can see the whole island."

She smiled at the stallion, and reached forward to gently bump his dark shoulder. "Stay cool, mister Hannibal, okay? Maybe I'll see you again." The tone of her voice indicated her meaning: Keep out of trouble, will you?

Then she turned and scurried across the hill and into the trees.

friesian mix; dark bay splash (ref); 1 yr; 16’1 wfg
(YET-uh)