Vihaan, perceptive as her mother was, did not miss the concern that wavered in Cain’s expression. This only added to the puzzle that the stallion was to the mare. He was so different from the aggressive, possessive, threatening stranger whom she’d called despicable and a lowly beast in words he hadn’t understood. And try as she might to focus only on who he appeared to be before her now, Vihaan could not shake free entirely from the rage and the anger Cain had stirred within her in the Meadow. Still, she remained placid, and nodded in understanding at the gypsy stallion’s assessment of the desert winter. The dunalino knew that even in the height of summer, the nights upon the sand plains could often be frigid.

There was no hiding the flicker of surprise that crossed her face when Cain more or less allowed her freedom to roam as she pleased, but Vihaan dignified her keeper in that she did not allow her visage to darken with doubt or disbelief. As unexpected as it was, he had seemed earnest and honest when he’d spoken, and Vihaan would choose to believe him. In any case, she wasn’t likely to travel far in her current state. Already she was beginning to feel the great toll that this pregnancy – her first – was taking on her body. Still, she was young and strong in all ways, and had never been one to complain. "Thank you, Cain," she said softly in acknowledgement, and then went on to answer his query. "My father, Shamwari." And, unspoken; meree maan, Darshan. My mother.

The love she felt for her dam, despite whatever other feelings the perlino dun stirred within her, blazed bright in Vihaan’s very soul. Darshan had protected her and guided her since birth, and the pale mare was Vihaan’s whole world. Along with the love, there was burning pride. Her mother was strong. Her mother was wise. Vihaan had learned many things, and seen more in her youth than many others ever would in the whole of their lifetimes. It was only natural that she wanted to share this, but with Cain, for now at least, she held herself apart. Only time would ease the pain that his callous words had caused. His vulgar and brutal dismissal of Vihaan’s mother, of Vihaan’s inherited culture and values had cut her deeply, wounding pride and heart and soul.

Some part of her wonders whether Cain was wounded in the same way. Their confrontation earlier had made it clear that physical harm did not bother him, but that did not necessarily mean he wasn’t hurting. Vihaan almost hesitated in her action when Cain flinched upon her approach, and even as she drew back, her face creased in confusion. What a puzzle indeed. Perhaps later, she’d get the sense of him, but for now, the dunalino followed his lead. As she trailed in his wake, her hooves making divots in the sand around his own settling hoofprints, she could not help but be plagued by an unsettling sense of de ja vu. They had been here before. The sand had been earth and grass, the palms had been a cluster of small trees. And Vihaan had been ahead, seeking neither shade nor shelter, but leading Cain down a path that could not be untrodden.

It was clear that she was transformed. Not completely, mind, for there were things intrinsic to her that nothing would ever alter; strength of spirit and a heart of honour. But it was another unspoken thing between them, just as Cain’s own changed manner was. As Vihaan bent her knees and settled on the cool sand a small distance from Cain, legs half-tucked ‘neath her, she inwardly sought direction. If she were to live here, she wanted things to be comfortable between them if nothing else. But as the mare tried to quiet her thoughts, she struggled to piece together a question that would allow her to gain valuable insight into Cain’s motives, his way of life, his changed heart. But when her mouth opened, something unexpected was dredged from the very depths of her. A borrowed memory, from the time when - as a newborn filly - Vihaan had drawn her very first breath. A truth so dark and intimate to Vihaan that she’d never voiced it even to her beloved mother.

"She nearly died when I was born." Vihaan’s shock upon being ambushed by her own words was immediate and intense. Her ears flattened and her eyes widened even as she tore her focus from Cain’s gaze, tossing her head away with an echo of the fierce anger that had driven her to defend Everglow so vehemently against the black and white male. Swallowing hard, Vihaan clenched her jaw to prevent the turmoil that started up within her from breaking free, offering no clarity to her vague statement. Let Cain puzzle over her words and decipher them alone, if he could. She could hardly be honest with herself, let alone the stallion who stood nearby. Unable to bring herself to look back at him, Vihaan let the contempt she felt both towards the stallion and herself simmer in silence that would only be broken if Cain chose to speak.

Perhaps in this instance, the source of her anger towards him was unjustified, because how could he have known her unfathomable fear? There was nothing to be done about it now – nature would take its course come what may. But Vihaan brooded, full of self-loathing. Now that her dread and anxiety about the future had been dragged into the light, would it only make her feel worse? More than that, though, she feared that just as her fierceness had flared to life, would Cain’s scorn be stirred again? At any rate, it might give him insight into why she was so much less than she had been before.

Vihaan was thoroughly upset that she might have unknowingly exposed her most vulnerable side to him, and angry that he now knew something that was meant to be hers alone. The weight of his earlier, hasty and uninformed judgments concerning herself and her mother still weighed heavily upon Vihaan, and it would crush her a little more if he were to look upon her now and see only weakness and trepidation.