She had made her decision, but it hadn't been easy. The eager young girl that had made her home on the crossing for so long had slowly but surely matured into a bright-eyed mare. There was still much growing to do, her figure still in that awkward akimbo stage of the not yet fully mature, but it was a far cry from the fuzzy yearling she had arrived as.

In a way, it was surprising that no one had scooped up the nubile young mare. Then again, she'd avoided most adults like the plague, and had not yet weathered a Fall in which her scent might entice males to seek her out. She had been sorely tempted by Bjorn, but their interaction with mare and child ended quickly thereafter and she had quickly resumed to her wandering ways.

Now though, as summer swelled into Fall, the girl could feel things changing. Irritability made her terse with those that were brave enough to approach her, and her anxiety about her future had transformed from a nebulous thought into something that kept her up at night.

Ivanna had heard others mention the Peak with varying levels of approval. Some, like the tall tobiano that was here so often, seemed to hate their very existence, while most others were ambivalent. What seemed to be true of all the conversations she had overheard though, was that the Peak was a haven for lone mares. Where she could rest easy knowing that her hand could not be forced in any way, and she would be free to continue living her life as a free spirit.

Cautiously the slender mare followed the well-worn trails into the Peak, her body tense with nervous energy. She had hardly made her way in, however, when a familiar scent caught her up short. She froze, one pale leg lifted mid-step as she sorted through the many equines she had met during her year here until at last, she placed the scent. It had been that white stallion, the pretty one, from so long ago. He'd run off after their interaction to follow the feathered buckskin girl to do adult things that had seemed slightly icky to her then.

Now the thought of it made her mouth a little dry and her insides squirm with uncomfortable energy.

She followed his trail until it became indecipherable on the rocky terrain, and then paused in indecision. She could seek him out, after all, a friendly face would be welcome right about now, but then again, wouldn't it be a little weird for her to find a stallion in a herd meant for mares? Maybe she was just being delusional.

Finally erring on the side of her own comfort, the splashed girl called out for her once-friend Verrat, eager to find out what he was doing here.

Ivanna