Orhan

Orhan's face dropped when Vita Nova spoke, and he stiffened, as though afraid to move a muscle. His eyes rolled in their sockets to watch Shamwari's reaction from his peripheral vision, but they returned to the mare before him in a heartbeat when she continued talking. He felt the warmth draining from his face as he listened to what Vita Nova had to say. It was not what he had expected would happen, to say the least, and Orhan suddenly felt very out of place, standing there in the sand beside two horses so apparently at odds with each other.

But then, instead of escalating the situation further, Vita Nova almost immediately made peace with her long-lost brother. Orhan heaved a sigh of relief and swallowed against a lump in his throat, eyeing the young mare curiously. He wondered how long she had been holding those feelings within her. Clearly she had simply needed to let them out, but was ready to move on from them, and for that he was thankful. As the conversation became lighter, the buckskin stallion relaxed slightly, lowering his head and forcing a wry smile onto his lips. Once Shamwari had finished speaking, he chipped in with the same friendly tone of voice, nodding in agreement.

"I'd be happy to take you to the dunes," he said earnestly. "I know the stallion your mother lives with, and I'm sure he wouldn't mind if you wanted to visit her."