Jetta

As the mares exchanged pleasantries, Jetta did not fail to notice how her friend looked at her, with a kind of admiration in her eyes. It was then she realized that - while she had not been much smaller than she was now - she had not even matured yet, the last time they had seen each other. This was the first time Macabre had seen her as a grown mare, and Jetta could only imagine what an odd experience it must be, seeing how she had grown and filled out. She would never be as tall or well-built as her mother, but she was still a far cry from the little filly that had never wanted to grow up all that time ago. And it was strange, in a good way, to think now that she and her friend finally stood on equal terms for the first time, as two adults.

At Macabre's suggestion that Jetta needed a drink, the young mare smiled and nodded with gratitude, suddenly aware of the dry, unpleasantly salty taste in her mouth. She began to follow her friend inland, tilting her chin up to marvel at the great barrier of strange, leafy trees that loomed before them. As they broke into the forest, the young mare nearly coughed on the wall of humidity that hit her. It was not any warmer here than it was on the crossing in summer, but she had never experienced such dampness in the air, dampness that made it feel ten times warmer than it actually was. Very quickly, though she was still damp from her swim, Jetta began to feel her skin prickle with sweat.

This did not diminish her awe or appreciation for her surroundings, however. Atlantis was beautifully alien, all bright colors and sounds and scents: more than her brain could take in all at once. It took her a moment to react when Macabre spoke, but eventually she glanced sideways at her friend and shook her head, her blue eyes gleaming with excitement that masked her underlying fatigue. "No, never," she said, and paused to nose appreciatively at a huge red flower, its petals veined with purple. "It's so different here. I feel like I'm in a dream."

When they reached the falls, cascading like a veil into a lurid blue-green pool, Jetta stopped with a small gasp. She had seen waterfalls before - there was a small one on the peak, for instance - but this was different, grander and almost magical in its seclusion, with thick green foliage hugging it on every side. Even as she stooped to drink from the fresh, cool water, Jetta's eyes continued to roam her surroundings, and her ears flicked to and fro atop her head with every new sound. Macabre, meanwhile, had waded ankle-deep into the water, and when the little red mare turned to her, Jetta lifted her head and smiled brightly as water dripped from her pink chin.

"Yes, thank you. Your home is so beautiful, Macabre. I can see why you'd rather stay here than in the Peak."